The Abu Dhabi Ship Building Company will deliver the first of four naval vessels comprising the $500 million (Dh1.83 billion) Baynunah contract to the UAE Navy in 2008, the company's chief said.
"Design work on both the platform and combat system are continuing in 2005 while equipment and materials are ordered and are being manufactured around the globe.
The first vessel is scheduled to be completed in 2008 and the other three will be ready at approximately six-month intervals following the first," William Saltzer, chief executive of ADSB, told Gulf News.
The contract was awarded in late 2003 and the first several months went into finalising the UAE Navy's selection of the major platform and combat system equipment.
ADSB has also won its first naval defence deal in Oman and is bidding in some other GCC markets, he said.
"At the end of 2004, we signed our first naval new construction contract with the Oman Ministry of Defence for a 64-metre naval landing craft.
"We are currently working on other projects in the development and tendering stage in Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain," he said. ADSB has completed delivery of 42 assault boats to the UAE Coastguard.
"The initital order was for 24 vessels and all were delivered in 2003. Subsequently, we received orders for another 42 and all these have been completed in 2004.
"So we have delivered 66 of these vessels and hope to sell many more."
Rolls-Royce will supply the warship water jets for the Baynunah-class corvettes being built by Abu Dhabi Ship Building Company.
Three Kamewa waterjets on each Baynunah-class corvette will help create a top speed of more than 30 knots, a statement from Rolls-Royce said yesterday.
Gulf News
