“This continues our policy of building in Africa for Africa and its makes us very proud to see our South African facility maintaining the Damen tradition of building technically advanced vessels to the highest standards,” said Friso Visser, Sales Manager Africa for Damen,
“The versatile FCS 5009 Patrol boats have consistently shown themselves to be an ideal solution for patrolling an EEZ. They have low operational costs, are very fuel efficient, have a competitive purchase price and, crucially, are easy to maintain. Overall, they provide a reasonable Total Cost of Ownership, making them attractive to countries that have a requirement to patrol an EEZ,” he added.
DSCT has prepared the vessels for outfitting with Sea Rogue weaponry; a system that includes a 20mm cannon forward of the wheelhouse and two 12.7mm Browning guns fitted respectively port and starboard of the wheelhouse. The Sea Rogue can be operated by a hand controller and has an accurate target-tracking feature. Working with manufacturer Reutech, DSCT can install the weaponry in a matter of days.
“The FCS 5009 is deliverable in two formats. It can be either a fast crew supply ship or a security patrol vessel. Though the vessels are complete and ready to go, they still possess flexibility. DSCT is able to carry out the final conversion for either option within a matter of weeks. They are also the first in their class to be outfitted with MTU engines that offer a lighter weight-to-power ratio for increased speed. “What this shows is the flexibility of Damen vessels,” said DSCT Chairman Sam Montsi
Damen builds a wide range of both inshore and offshore patrol vessels and maintains stocks of many of the most popular models.
Damen Shipyards Group operates 32 ship building and repair yards. It has delivered more than 5,000 vessels to over 100 countries and delivers around 160 vessels annually to customers worldwide.
Damen’s focus on standardisation, modular construction and keeping vessels in stock leads to short delivery times, low ‘total cost of ownership’, high resale values and reliable performance.
Damen offers a wide range of products, including tugs, workboats, naval and patrol vessels, high speed craft, cargo vessels, dredgers, vessels for the offshore industry, ferries, pontoons and super yachts. For nearly all vessel types Damen offers a broad range of services, including maintenance, spare parts delivery, training and transfer of shipbuilding know-how. Damen also offers a variety of marine components; especially nozzles, rudders, anchors, anchor chains and steel works.
