TRIESTE, Italy (BulgarianMilitary.com), June 27, 2018, Author: Galina Zdravkova, Photo credit: en.wikipedia.org

The Norwegian Coast Guard will receive three vessels from Vard Holdings Limited (“Vard”), which is a subsidiary of one of the largest shipbuilders in the world Fincantieri, headquarted in Trieste, Italy, learned BulgarianMilitary.com.

That was announced on Monday, 25th June 2018.

The deal agreed between Vard and the Defence Ministry agency NDMA (Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency) is worth about EUR 550 million and its effectiveness is subject to some conditions.

The development and modernization of the Norwegian Armed Forces are among the major duties of the NDMA.

The intention of the Norwegian Government to acquire three new coast guard vessels dates back to September 2016. The offers of three competing shipyards have been reviewed and Vard has been chosen to continue with the negotiations in October 2017. This year, in early June, the Norwegian Parliament approved the investments for that purpose.

The deliveries are expected to take place in 2022, 2023 and 2024 from Vard Langsten in Norway.

The new vessels will replace the Nordkapp-class coast guard vessels and are designed for operations in all weather and sea conditions, both inshore and offshore, all over the world. They are developed so that to withstand missions in the heavy conditions of the arctic areas, and for that purpose they will feature ice-strengthened hull and ice-class notation. The length of the vessels will be 136 m and the beam – 22 m, and they will meet the latest requirements concerning such specialized vessels and the needs of the NDMA. With their strong ocean-going capacities the vessels are appropriate for long-distance transits, surveillance, search-and-rescue operations, and oil recovery.

Photo: Patrolvessel KV Nordkapp (W 320) in the Adventfjord, Spitsbergen, northern Norway

BulgarianMilitary.com