NOAA's Alaska Fisheries Science Center awarded a purchase order to B & N Fisheries Company, a small disadvantaged business, for $7,584,638 on April 1, 2027, to charter a vessel for the Biennial Bottom Trawl Survey of Alaska Groundfish in the Gulf of Alaska and Aleutian Islands through March 31, 2032. This is a total small business set-aside under NAICS 483114.
Work is performed in the Gulf of Alaska and Aleutian Islands with port calls in Dutch Harbor, Adak, Sand Point, Kodiak, Seward, Ketchikan, and Juneau. The contract calls for a bottom trawler with minimum overall length of 36.5 meters, 1,000 horsepower main engine, split trawl winches, stern ramp with gallows or gantry, hydraulic crane rated for 5.4 metric tons, and minimum deck work space of 55.7 square meters. The vessel must accommodate six to eight Government Scientists plus a crew of at least five (captain, lead-fisher, engineer-fisher, general-fisher, and cook). Survey operations occur May through August in alternating years: Aleutian Islands in 2028 and 2030; Gulf of Alaska in 2027, 2029, and 2031. The base charter spans 55 days with optional extensions up to 35 additional days across four option periods. Pricing includes daily charter rates, moorage and communications (not-to-exceed $15,000), government equipment transportation, fuel (not-to-exceed $100,000), and optional additional charter days. The solicitation was posted August 14, 2026, with proposals due August 28, 2026.