1 June 2015 1. Today, CSL delivered the thirteenth of the series of twenty Fast Patrol Vessel “ICGS Anmol” under construction for the Indian Coast Guard. The Protocol of Delivery and Acceptance was signed between Capt R.S. Sundar, Director (Operations), CSL and Commanding Officer (Designate) of the vessel Cmdt. Satish Bisht. DIG T P Sadanandan, Principal Director (Material), DIG G Devanand, CGRPS (KOC), DIG S Ghosh, CSO (Tech-NE) and other senior officials of ICG and CSL were present on the occasion. The vessel will be operated from the Coast Guard Station at Haldia. The yard has consistently performed beyond expectations in that it has delivered 7 ships in FY 2014-15 and 3 ships in FY 2015-16. This is indeed a commendable achievement. The yard delivered 7 ships consisting of 6 Fast Patrol Vessels for Indian Coast Guard and 1 Platform Supply Vessel for Norwegian owner in 2014-15. BY 513 the third ship being delivered in 2015-16. The other two being Fast Patrol Vessels for ICGS & 1 Buoy Tender Vessel to Directorate General of Light Houses and Light Ships. 2. As on date 12 ships out of 20 have been handed over to the Indian Coast Guard, the 15th Ship has been launched and keel of 16th Ships has been laid. Cochin Shipyard has successfully delivered 12 ships in a span of just 20 months with an average delivery interval of 1.6 months, against the contractual commitment of 3 months interval. The last vessel of the order is to be delivered by Mar 2017 as per the contract with ICG. However, with the current pace of construction, Cochin Shipyard is targeting to accomplish this by mid of 2016, much ahead of schedule. 3. This is a clear evidence of Cochin Shipyard’s commitment towards the maritime security of our nation. The 12 vessels already delivered have been commissioned into the service of the Indian Coast Guard and are vigilantly guarding our great nation’s vast coastline.This vessel is being delivered 20 days ahead of the contractual schedule. CSL has been delivering the FPVs in an interval less than 2 months, against the contractual requirement of once in 3 months, the yard is planning to complete the contract much ahead of schedule, thus ensuring the coastal security of the nation. 4. The contract for the Design & Construction of 20 Nos. Fast Patrol Vessels was awarded to Cochin Shipyard on the 20th of October 2010. Though Cochin Shipyard had been repairing Indian Coast Guard ships in the past, this was the first new building order for CSL from the Indian Coast Guard. This was also the largest order won by CSL on a competitive tender. These Fast Patrol Vessels are primarily intended for patrolling within the Exclusive Economic Zone & Coastal Patrol, carrying out anti smuggling, a nti piracy and search & rescue operations, and for fisheries protection & monitoring. They also have a secondary role of providing a communication link, and escort coastal convoys, in times of hostilities and war. 5. The vessels are equipped with a long range gun and ultra-modern vessel control, navigation & communication tools. The vessels are capable of 7 days continuous deployment at sea without replenishing. These FPVs are small in size when compared to the large vessels that Cochin Shipyard has built. But designing and building these vessels posed challenges to the yard as these are extremely weight sensitive vessels. The ship with a length of 50 metres, beam of 7.6 metres and a complement of 35 was contracted to achieve a speed of 33 knots. The displacement of the ship has a direct bearing on achieving this performance parameter and therefore weight control at the time of design, procurement and construction was of paramount importance. It is a measure of the outstanding professionalism of the shipyard that the weight control exercised on these ships right through the build process resulted in negligible difference between the design weight and actual weight. All the vessels delivered have achieved speeds in excess of the contracted speed during sea trials and surpassed the expectations of Indian Coast Guard with regard to the performance/operational requirements. Cochin Shipyard Limited press release |