Spanish shipbuilder Navantia has held a steel-cutting ceremony for the first in a series of three new Avante 2200 corvettes to be built for the Royal Saudi Navy (RSN).
As disclosed, the ceremony took place on December 17, 2024, at Navantia’s San Fernando shipyard.
This event comes just a week after Navantia signed a new contract with the Saudi Ministry of Defense in Riyadh for the construction of three new Avante 2200 corvettes.
This project follows the successful completion of the first contract for the RSN, which saw the delivery of five units. The second contract will involve the construction of three additional corvettes.
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The deal also includes the provision of an integrated logistics support package and crew training, together with a period of operational evaluation of the vessels by the navy at the Rota Naval Base, where Navantia will offer support services.
The new corvettes will have similar specifications to the first series, with advanced capabilities in maritime surveillance, search and rescue, strategic asset defense, and electronic warfare.
The project also incorporates Navantia’s technology, including the HAZEM combat system, through the SAMINavantia joint venture, the HERMESYS integrated communications system, the DORNA fire control system, and the integrated platform control system.
It also will encompass the MINERVA integrated bridge, the propulsion engines, under license from MTU, the diesel generator sets, and the gearboxes, under license from Schelde.
Finally, Navantia’s repairs business unit will also participate in the program with the work to be carried out during the corvettes’ dry docking in San Fernando.
The ships will boost the navy’s intelligence and anti-submarine, anti-aircraft, anti-surface, and electronic warfare capabilities. With the effective start of this new contract, the last of the three ships is scheduled to be delivered in 2028.