In all, the ADSB has received the contract for building six 71-metre multi-mission corvettes for the UAE Navy, and once they are delivered ADSB will emerge as the biggest warship building facility in the whole of Arabian Gulf.
The vessels are being designed by the French company Constructions Mecaniques de Normandle (CMN) and the first of the six corvettes are being currently built at CMN’s Cherbourg yard under subcontract from ADSB. All the other remaining five vessels are in different stages of production at the ADSB yard at Musaffah.
“The first vessel will be delivered from the French yard in 2011, while the second one will be delivered within eight months after that from the ADSB yard. All the other four vessels will be launched sequentially in a gap of six months each from the yard at Musaffah,’’ William D. Stewart, vice-president for marketing of ADSB told Khaleej Times here.
Asked whether the current financial crisis has affected the progress of the war-ship building, he said, “We are not at all affected. Last year we had made a revenue of Dh450 million, and this year we are targeting to earn Dh700 million.”
“The corvettes contract itself is for about $1 billion and we also have lot of other activities like commercial shipbuilding and repair as well as naval refits, repairs and upgrades. We undertake 200 commercial ship repair a year while 40 to 60 vessels will be present in our yard at any given point of time for various services.”
Asked about the unique features of the corvettes being built by ADSB, he said they would be capable of a wide range of military operations including defence against both air and surface threats. They would be fitted with Rolling Airframe Missile (RAM), Surface to Surface Missiles (SSM) and Surface to Air Missile (SAM). They will also have 76 mm and 30 mm guns.
On the progress of the corvettes building he said the hull and superstructure of the first vessel that is being built in France has been completed. It has also been fitted with machine, main gun and it is in the final stage of outfitting.
The hull, main deck, internal bulkheads of the second, third and fourth vessels have been completed at the ADSB yard at Musaffah. The superstructure of the second vessel has been fitted while it is being fitted on the third vessel.
Outfitting of the second vessel has progressed significantly while it is about to commence in the case of the third vessel. The keel block and bow section of the fifth vessel have been completed while the steel for the sixth vessel has already been cut, Stewart said.
ramavarman@khaleejtimes.ae
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