Reliance Naval and Engineering at Pipavav is one of the largest shipbuilding facility in India. The shipyard has an installed throughput of 140,000 tons of steel, equivalent to an annual revenue of a minimum Rs 4,000 crore. Presently,
RNEL is constructing 20 ships of three categories for the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard —these are five Naval Offshore Patrol Vessels for the Navy, 14 Fast Patrol Vessels for the Coast Guard and one Training Ship also for the Coast Guard.
Anil Ambani led RNEL has been under lot of financial and political trouble for quite sometime. Though things seem to be looking up at Reliance Naval and Engineering when on Wednesday they launched a 3,000-tonne training ship for the Indian Coast Guard. The state-of-the-art training vessel will be delivered to the ICG in May next year.
The 105-metre long training vessel, the largest ship ever built for the ICG, was launched by Urmila Singh, wife of Rajendra Singh, the Director General of the Indian Coast Guard, at the Pipavav Port in Amreli district of Gujarat. The ship, built at a cost of Rs 220 crore, has been named as ICGS Varuna during the launch ceremony attended by a large gathering of Coast Guard officers and government officials.
RNEL chief executive officer Debashis Bir stated that the ship will join the Indian Coast Guard fleet in May 2019 after extensive tests and trials.
According to a press release by RNEL, the training ship has the primary role to impart sea training to cadets, including an all-round exposure to the various facets of sea life. The vessel is 105 meters long, with a capacity of accommodating 242 personnel. The vessel is powered by twin diesel engines of 10,400KW and can move at a speed of 20knots. The vessel is also equipped with weapons systems and is capable of policing maritime zones of the country as well as for search and rescue missions. The vessel’s capability also includes operating a twin-engine helicopter for undertaking maritime reconnaissance.
This ship is a first-of-its-kind next generation training ship, and has been entirely designed by the Design Bureau of Reliance Naval & Engineering. ICGS Varuna is a “synergy of the latest cutting-edge technology and 40 years of operational experience of the Indian Coast Guard, in terms of architecture, ergonomics, training requirements and maintenance envelopes,” said the press release.
RNEL last year had handed over two of the Naval Off Shore Patrol vessels to the Indian Navy for trials. They should be getting commissioned by end of this year. Hopefully next year RENL should be handing over two more of the NOVPs and then the fifth one too. Soon the first of the Fast Patrol Vessels fir ICG should be getting launched. RENL is also waiting eagerly for the contract of LPDs from the Indian Navy.
