Taiwan Launches Siraya First High Latitude Oceanic Patrol Vessels for North Pacific Control.

Taiwan commissioned the 4,000-ton Chiayi-class offshore patrol vessel Taipei and launched the first high-latitude oceanic patrol vessel Siraya during a ceremony at CSBC’s Kaohsiung yard, President Lai Ching-te said in a November 1 Facebook post. The moves deepen the Coast Guard’s endurance and cold-weather coverage while advancing a multiyear plan for 141 cutters by 2027 and six polar-capable ships by the early 2030s.

Taiwan is expanding its white-hull reach on two fronts, commissioning Taipei, the fourth and final unit of the long-range Chiayi class, and launching Siraya, the lead ship in a new high-latitude series tailored for North Pacific conditions. Taipei rounds out a four-cutter program centered on weeks-long station time, aviation support, and medical capacity. Siraya inaugurates a six-ship line budgeted since 2022 for high-sea patrols alongside Taiwan’s distant-water fleet, with the build led by CSBC in Kaohsiung. Program details track with prior government statements and industry reporting on the 2018 to 2027 fleet recapitalization and the newer cold-water cutter effort.
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President Lai Ching-te launches the Coast Guard Administration’s first high-latitude ocean-going patrol vessel and names it Siraya. (Picture source: Weibo Channel @疯子白杨)

Taipei completes a four-cutter program designed for endurance. Official documentation places the class at about 4,000 tons, with full-load displacement slightly higher and a range beyond 10,000 nautical miles. Sea-keeping up to Beaufort 10 addresses patrol demands in the Bashi Channel, the South China Sea, and the central Pacific tuna grounds. The fit is law-enforcement oriented yet capable, with 20 mm guns, 2.75-inch rockets, and high-pressure water cannons. A flight deck and hangar accommodate UH-60 and S-70C helicopters to extend the RMP/COP and organic SAR reach beyond the littorals.

Siraya is the first of six high-latitude oceanic patrol vessels defined in 2022, with a stated budget of about NT$11.7 billion. The all-steel hull incorporates cold-weather and icing provisions. The patrol variant carries a 20 mm gun, embarked UAVs, and three water-cannon stations. A logistics variant is planned with containerized modules, a multi-purpose boat, and an assault craft for rescue, fisheries law enforcement, and transport tasks. The subsequent five ships will take names from Taiwan’s Indigenous peoples, as indicated by the presidency.

The Chiayi class integrates a medical compartment with negative-pressure isolation and an operating room sized for mass-casualty intake, reflecting lessons from pandemic and heavy-weather rescue operations. Water-cannon range is around 120 meters, enabling standoff during rammings, illicit transfers, or sand-dredger incidents. Remote weapon stations and an indigenous fire-control system provide a graduated set of effects from warnings to hull-stopping force without resorting to standard naval gunfire.

Operationally, Taipei and Siraya add capacity to a Coast Guard that acts as the first responder at sea. The service builds the initial picture, feeds the shared COP, and coordinates with Navy units under EMCON when PLA or China Coast Guard ships approach restricted areas or undersea cables. With a 10,000-nautical-mile range and embarked aviation, a Chiayi-class cutter can hold station for weeks, rotate aircrews for over-the-horizon surveillance, and conduct boardings in sea states that previously curtailed operations. The Siraya line, hardened for long swell and cold waters, maintains a year-round presence in the North Pacific grounds worked by Taiwan’s distant-water fleets, serving as an offset against coercive inspections and quota manipulation. In peacetime, the effect is persistence. In a crisis, it is continuity of law enforcement, safety of life at sea, and, if required, a rapid shift to naval support tasks.

The presidency highlights maritime cooperation with countries sharing similar approaches and the passage of revisions to the seven cable laws to safeguard subsea links, energy, logistics, and continuity of communications. The 2018–2027 schedule for 141 hulls and the 2022–2032 trajectory for six high-latitude patrol vessels shape a build-up that supports local industry and densifies the white-hull posture. In practice, this means more combined patrols, escorts for cable-repair ships, and greater ability to stay on station at a distance while maintaining interoperability with allied navies through a shared COP.

Under persistent gray-zone pressure, IUU fishing, and risks to subsea infrastructure, Taiwan pursues endurance platforms with hangars, UAVs, and medical capacity to make its authority visible on the high seas daily. For partners, the emergence of Siraya as a class and the completion of the Chiayi quartet indicate a Coast Guard actor able to integrate into joint fisheries enforcement, SAR, and technical escort schemes. For Beijing, routine pressure meets a continuous presence that documents activities, deters unwanted behavior, and narrows gray-zone options.