Safe Boats International, which is headquartered at Olympic View Industrial Park, has landed a $30 million contract to supply the U.S. Marines with its unsinkable boats. The first three boats are to be delivered by December.

When the bidding process began, there were approximately 40 other companies competing for the contract. If the Marines exercise the full options of the staggered contract, Safe Boats could end up selling them more than 100 of the 36-foot crafts. Safe Boats could add as many as 25 people to its payroll to handle the new contract. It currently employs about 50 people now.

The boats will be built utilizing Safe Boats’ patented foam-stabilization construction. A foam collar gives the boat the buoyancy and stability of an inflatable craft, but it can’t be penetrated by small arms fire.

It was the company’s relationship with the U.S. Coast Guard that in part led to the Marine contract. Safe Boats is the largest supplier of nonstandard Coast Guard boats — those shorter than 41 feet — and are purchased on a district-by-district basis. Not long ago, the company received a $10 million Coast Guard contract to build boats for the new homeland security effort.

Raytheon Naval and Maritime Integrated Systems, which is headquartered in Poulsbo, will handle maintenance of the new vessels worldwide. The company will establish a maintenance and support network for the boat so that no matter where it is deployed around the globe; there will be transport maintenance platforms available to fully maintain it in the field.

A percentage breakdown of the contract between the two firms was not available, but it was estimated that approximately 18 percent of the contract would go to Raytheon.