A US owner has ordered the first new Great Lakes bulker since 1983.

Italian-owned Fincantieri Bay Shipbuilding in Wisconsin will deliver the cargoship to Interlake Steamship of Ohio in the middle of 2022.

The new river-class, self-unloading bulker is believed to be the first laker built in the Lakes area for 36 years.

It will transport raw materials to support manufacturing throughout the region.