[3] The yard was started as a cooperation between Kværner and the City of Philadelphia, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the Government of the United States.

In January 2013, the shipyard completed construction of fourteen product tankers for subsidiaries of American Shipping Company (AMSC), Overseas Shipholding Group (OSG) and Crowley.

On September 29, 2011, Aker Philadelphia signed a contract with SeaRiver Maritime Inc. (the shipping subsidiary of ExxonMobil) for the construction of two Aframax oil product tankers for delivery in 2014.

[4] On November 6, 2013, Aker Philadelphia Shipyard announced an agreement to build two container ships, named Aloha class, for Matson, Inc.[5] On June 10, 2014, the shipyard announced the planned establishment of Philly Tankers, a Jones Act Shipping Company.

On June 11, 2014, Aker Philadelphia Shipyard has delivered the first of two aframax tankers to SeaRiver Maritime, Exxon Mobil Corporation's U.S. marine affiliate.

This tanker is 820 feet long and designed to transport 800,000 barrels of Alaskan North Slope crude oil from Prince William Sound, Alaska to the U.S. West Coast.

On September 30, 2015, Aker Philadelphia Shipyard delivered the Ohio, the first of four next-generation 50,000 dwt product tankers that it is building for Crowley Maritime Corporation.

On October 1, 2015, the shipyard began production activities on two 3,600 TEU Aloha class containerships that it is building for Matson Navigation Company.