Navantia to build a new Avante 2200 corvette for the Saudi Navy.

Spanish shipmaker Navantia is to build a new Avante 2200-type corvette for Saudi Arabia, on the basis of a $US 2.2 billion contract which was signed last year for the procurement of 5 Avante 2200 corvettes.

Avante 2200 corvette at NAVDEX 2017 in United Arab Emirates (Picture source : Navy Recognition)

This first vessel is expected to be delivered by the end of 2021, and the last one is intended to be provided by the end of 2022 (initial contract). The negotiations of this contract began in 2015 and it was signed in 2018.

The corvettes will be based on the Avante 2200 and adapted to the requirements of the Royal Saudi Navy, offering advanced features, among which stand out an excellent sea keeping, high survival capacity and operating capacity at extreme temperatures in the area of the Gulf, all with an optimum life cycle cost.

The design of the corvettes is state-of-the-art, maximizing at the same time the participation of Navantia incorporating its own products such as the CATIZ combat system, the HERMESYS integrated communications system, the DORNA firing direction, the Integrated Platform Control System, the MINERVA integrated bridge and motors and gearboxes.

The armament of the Saudi ships could consist of 8 Boeing Harpoon Block II anti-ship missiles, 16 vertical launchers for Raytheon ESSM surface to air missiles, one 76 mm Leonardo Super Rapid naval gun system, one 35mm Rheinmetall Oerlikon Millenium CIWS, 2 remote weapon stations, 2 triple 324-mm torpedo launchers, 2 CHAFF decoy launchers, one Multi function radar (possibly TRS-3D), a hangar and an helicopter pad to accommodate a 10-ton class helicopter.

The agreement between Navantia and the Royal Saudi Navy includes the building and the delivering of five corvettes, the training of the Saudi Navy’s personnel and life cycle support during five years, with an option for other five years.

A Navantia statement has mentioned that the contract signed with Saudi Arabia represents the largest in the history of Spanish public shipyards with a foreign client. This contract strengthens the immediate future of Navantia and could benefit all the shipyards of the company. It may also generate up to 6,000 new jobs.