Navantia to build three new Avante 2200 corvettes for Saudi Arabia
The Saudi Arabian Ministry of Defence and Navantia have signed a new contract for the design and construction of a second series of three AVANTE 2200 corvettes, of the same class as those already delivered to the Royal Saudi Navy.
The signing ceremony, held in Riyadh, was attended by the Chairman of Navantia, Ricardo Domínguez, and the Commander of the Royal Saudi Navy (RSNF), Admiral Mohammed Alghuraybi; as well as the Deputy Minister of Defence for Executive Affairs of Saudi Arabia, Khaled Al-Biyari; the Spanish Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Jorge Hevia; and the Director General of Armaments and Material (DGAM) of the Ministry of Defence, Admiral Aniceto Rosique, among other authorities.
The construction of the corvettes will begin this year and the last vessel is scheduled to be delivered in 2028. Navantia will be responsible for the delivery of the first unit, while the second and third units will be completed in Saudi Arabia with the installation, integration and testing of the combat system, as was the case in the previous contract.
The order includes the supply of an integrated logistics support package and crew training, together with a period of operational evaluation of the vessels by the Navy at the Rota naval base, where Navantia will provide support services. In addition, Navantia will train a hundred Saudi engineers.
This contract represents some four million hours of work for the Bay of Cadiz, generating an impact of up to 2,000 jobs (direct, indirect and induced employment).
Avante 2200 model
This second series of three corvettes for Saudi Arabia will be identical to the first series, with a design based on NAVANTIA's AVANTE 2200 model, a multipurpose vessel specially designed for maritime traffic surveillance and control missions, search and rescue missions and assistance to other vessels, among others. In addition, the vessels will have an important capacity for the defence of strategic assets, intelligence and anti-submarine, anti-aircraft, anti-surface and electronic warfare capabilities.
The design of the corvettes is state-of-the-art, maximising Navantia's participation, incorporating its own products such as the HAZEM combat system, through the SAMINavantia joint venture, the HERMESYS integrated communications system, the DORNA fire control system, the Integrated Platform Control System, the MINERVA integrated bridge, the propulsion engines, under licence from MTU, the diesel generator sets, and the gearboxes, under licence from Schelde. Finally, the Repairs business unit will also participate in the programme with the work to be carried out during the dry-docking of the corvettes in San Fernando.
