The Philippines Will Soon Have Six of These Offshore Patrol Vessels Worth P31.4 Billion
The Philippines is getting six new offshore patrol vessels (OPV) to improve the country’s maritime defenses.
The six units of the OPVs will be built by Hyundai Heavy Industries after the company signed a contract with the Department of National Defense worth $573 million (about P31.4 billion) on Monday (June 27), according to a release from HHI.
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Each Navy OPV has a displacement of 2,400 tons, a length of 94.4 meters, a width of 14.3 meters, a maximum speed of 22 knots, a cruising speed of 15 knots, a range of 5,500 nautical miles. They will be built HHI’s shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea and is expected to be delivered in 2028.
Each vessel will be equipped with a 76mm main gun, two 30mm secondary guns, a helideck capable of operating a helicopter and unmanned aerial vehicles.
According to the release, the vessels were designed by incorporating the Philippine Navy’s OPV requirements to the proven BRP Jose Rizal class Frigate platform. The OPV order will kickstart HHI’s plans to actively seek opportunities into the overseas OPV market.
The signing ceremony of the OPV contract was held at the DND complex in Manila with Secretary of National Defense Delfin N. Lorenzana, chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines General Andres Centino, vice commander of the Philippine Navy Caesar Bernard N. Valencia, president of Korea Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering (parent company of Hyundai Heavy Industries) Sam-Hyun Ka, COO of Naval & Special Ship Business Unit of HHI, Sang-Hoon Nam, and Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to the Philippines Inchul Kim.
Secretary of National Defense Delfin N. Lorenzana with president of Korea Shipbuilding and Offshore Engineering (parent company of Hyundai Heavy Industries) Sam-Hyun Ka
In 2021, HHI signed a contract with the DND for the construction of two Corvettes as well as a contract for consturction of two BRP Jose Rizal Class Frigates in 2016, which it has already delivered to the Philippine Navy.
“I am glad that our strategy, in which we preemptively developed and exported various types of naval vessels by studying global market demand, has come to fruition,” said Mr. Sang-Hoon Nam, Chief Operating Officer of Naval & Special Ship Business Unit of HHI. “We will continue to lead the naval ship market by focusing on technological development through intensive investment in R&D, along with business diversification.”
