Cumulative Orders Surpass 32 Vessels
HJ Heavy Industries has secured an additional order for four new high-speed patrol boats for the Navy.
HJ Heavy Industries announced on the 26th that after being selected as a negotiation candidate in the bidding process for the construction of the Navy's new high-speed patrol boats (Geondoksuri-B Batch-II) Nos. 5 to 8, commissioned by the Defense Acquisition Program Administration earlier this month, it has signed a shipbuilding contract worth 249.3 billion KRW with the Defense Acquisition Program Administration following contract and technical negotiations.
With this, HJ Heavy Industries has achieved a remarkable success by not only successfully building all 16 vessels of the Navy's new high-speed patrol boats (Geondoksuri-B Batch-I) but also securing additional orders this year for four more vessels following the first batch ordered last year under the Batch-II project.
The new high-speed patrol boat project is a 200-ton class patrol boat construction initiative aimed at replacing the Navy's Chamsuri-class high-speed patrol boats, which played a key role in the victories of the First and Second Battle of Yeonpyeong in 1999 and 2002. The Geondoksuri-class patrol boats significantly enhance firepower, maneuverability, detection, defense capabilities, and mission performance compared to the existing Chamsuri-class, making them a truly next-generation combat vessel.
HJ Heavy Industries entered the defense business starting with the construction of the country's first high-speed patrol boat, the ‘Haksaengho’, in 1972.
It has built over 100 Chamsuri-class high-speed patrol boats, the Navy's main patrol vessels. The company has also been responsible for constructing eight next-generation guided missile fast attack crafts and 24 new high-speed patrol boats. The total contract value for these new high-speed vessels amounts to 1.7 trillion KRW.
An official from HJ Heavy Industries stated, “As the first maritime defense industry company in South Korea, we have been writing the history of domestically produced high-speed patrol boats for over 50 years. With pride in being the cradle of high-speed patrol boats and the technological expertise accumulated through building various combat ships and Marado-class vessels, which are the Navy’s main warships, we will contribute to protecting the nation’s waters and enhancing maritime power.”
HJ Heavy Industries plans to sequentially deliver the patrol boats to the Navy after construction. Upon receiving the patrol boats, the Navy will conduct berthing, sea trials, and operational integration before deploying them in active service.
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