Navantia will deliver the first of five Avante 2200 corvettes tomorrow ordered by the Royal Saudi Naval Force (RSNF) in a ceremony that will be held at the Spanish Navy’s base in San Fernando (Cádiz).
The delivery ceremony of the vessel 546, named AL-JUBAIL, will be attended by the Commander of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces (RSNF), Vice Admiral Fahad Bin Abdullah Al-Ghofaily; the Admiral Chief of Staff of the Spanish Navy (AJEMA), Antonio Martorell Lacave and Navantia’s Chairman, Ricardo Domínguez. The Secretary of State for Trade, Xiana Méndez; the Secretary General for Industry and SMEs, Raül Blanco and Mayoress of San Fernando, Patricia Cavada, among other guests, will be also present.
The corvette AL-JUBAIL will be delivered to the Saudi Navy in approximately three years since the cutting of its first steel plate (January 2019) and after having successfully passed the sea trials carried out in the waters of the Bay of Cadiz over the last months. These trials have verified the proper functioning of both the platform and the various systems, with the aim of demonstrating compliance with the requirements specified in the ship’s contract.
After the delivery, the training of the crew, which has been taking place in Spanish Navy premises and in Navantia Training Centre, will continue onboard in the Bay of Cádiz. The corvette AL-JUBAIL is 104 meters long, has a beam of 14 meters and can carry a total 102 crew and passengers. The contract for the construction of five corvettes came into force in November 2018 and, since the launching of this first unit (in July 2020), Navantia has already launched the five units with a cadence of four months between each of them, which means achieving this milestone in a record time of three years. The corvettes are based on the AVANTE 2200 design, adapted to the requirements of RSNF, offering advanced performance, excellent seakeeping, high survivability and capability to operate in extreme high temperatures such as in the Gulf area.
