Spanish state-owned shipbuilding company Navantia has launched the seventh corvette built for the Royal Saudi Naval Forces at its shipyards in the Bay of Cádiz.
The naming ceremony took place on October 25, with the ship named Neom. It is the second vessel in a batch contracted in 2025, following five units built between 2019 and 2024.
The Chief of Staff of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces, Vice Admiral Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al-Ghuraybi, highlighted that the ship will carry a name that is one of the flagship projects of Saudi Vision 2030 and reflects the ambition of an entire Kingdom. “NEOM combines “NEO,” meaning “new,” with the letter “M,” representing His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Crown Prince and Prime Minister.
“Launching one ship every four months is in line with the industrial schedule established for the programme and reflects the commitment of Navantia’s workforce to the customer. Your dedication, experience and professional excellence allow us to say with confidence that Navantia is rigorously fulfilling the commitments it has undertaken. This ship, which will soon enter service with our customer, is yet another demonstration of this shipyard’s capabilities," Navantia’s Chairman, Ricardo Domínguez, stated.
The second batch of three corvettes is being built at the San Fernando and Puerto Real facilities, with delivery of the final ship scheduled for 2029.
Navantia will deliver the first ship in Spain and will send the second and third ships to Saudi Arabia for the installation, integration and testing of the combat system, as was the case with the fourth and fifth ships under the previous contract.
The Implementing Agreement between Royal Saudi Naval Forces and the Spanish Navy includes the provision of an integrated logistics support package and crew training, together with a period of operational evaluation of the ships by the Navy at Rota Naval Base, where Navantia will provide support services.
Avante 2200 design
This second batch of three corvettes for Saudi Arabia will be identical to the first batch, according to Navantia. Their design is based on the AVANTE 2200 model, a versatile ship specifically designed for maritime traffic surveillance and control, search and rescue operations, and assistance to other ships, among other missions.
The ships will also offer capabilities for the protection of strategic assets, as well as intelligence, anti-submarine, anti-air, anti-surface and electronic warfare capabilities.
