Pacific 2015: ST Marine unveils design for Pacific Patrol Boat replacement programme

Ridzwan Rahmat, Sydney - IHS Jane's Defence Weekly
05 October 2015


ST Marine's design proposal for Australia's Pacific Patrol Boat replacement programme. Source: IHS/Ridzwan Rahmat
Key Points
ST Marine has revealed further details of its joint bid for the Pacific Patrol Boat programme
The proposal emphasises safety and ease of operation as selling points
Singapore shipbuilder ST Marine has unveiled a model of its proposal for Australia's Pacific Patrol Boat replacement programme.

The programme seeks to replace 22 patrol boats gifted to 12 Pacific Island states between 1987 and 1997 that are now approaching the end of their service lives.

Speaking to IHS Jane's at the Pacific 2015 international maritime exhibition and conference in Sydney on 6 October, ST Marine's vice-president for marketing and branding, Siow Chee Kiang, confirmed that the model of ST Marine's design for the programme was on show for the first time.

IHS Jane's first reported in May 2015 that the shipbuilder was in talks with Texas-based engineering company Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR) to jointly bid for the programme. The consortium now includes South Australian shipbuilder Adelaide Ship Construction International (ASCI).

A major selling point of ST Marine's design centres around ease of operations and safety, said Siow, who highlighted the ship's enclosed superstructure and lack of external walkways as an important safety aspect of the platform. "The vessel also features both a fly bridge that can be used for greater situational awareness and an enclosed bridge for better safety during bad weather," he added.

The vessel has a length of 40 m, a beam of 8 m, a draught of 2.5 m, and a top speed of 20 kt. The standard range is 2,500 n miles at 12 kt. The vessel will displace about 274 tonnes and can accommodate one rigid hull inflatable boat or unmanned surface vessel at its stern. It can be fitted with 12.7 mm gun mountings.

"We have also designed the deck with extra space so that it can accommodate an awning, allowing the vessel to carry additional passengers on deck in operations such as humanitarian and disaster relief operations", Siow said.

IHS Jane's reported in August that at least four more groupings have submitted bids for the programme including a partnership between Babcock International and Austal. The Australian government is expected to make a decision on the programme by the end of 2015.

http://www.janes.com/article/55040/p...ment-programme

hmmm apakah PT PAL berminat untuk ikut tender juga