Page 96 - Damen Shipyards Group

96 REPAIR & CONVERSION | FRIGATE BARTHOLOMEU DIAS 97

Recently, Damen Shiprepair Vlissingen in the south-
west of the Netherlands has welcomed Portuguese
naval vessel, Bartolomeu Dias. The vessel is no stranger
to the yard, having been built originally – by the Royal
Schelde (now Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding) – for
the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN) in 1994. The vessel,
then named Hr. Ms.Van Nes, was one of eight sister
vessels. In 2008, the RNLN sold six of the vessels – two
to Belgium, two to Chile and two to Portugal – while
maintaining two for its own fleet.

“The Royal Netherlands Navy’s contract stipulated
supporting the group of vessels after this sale,” explains
Michiel de Vliegher, commercial manager at Damen
Shiprepair Vlissingen. “It makes sense when you consider
they have fifteen years of operational experience with
the vessel.”

For Damen this setup means, essentially,
having two customers to serve.
“There are two project teams – a Dutch and a Portuguese
one. But the cooperation between all parties is good.
Damen Shiprepair Vlissingen is used to working with
various parties on a project and completing this to
the satisfaction of all parties. This is where our project
management really makes the difference. Essentially, the
project is a mid-life upgrade, the first stage of which was
carried out by the RNLN in Den Helder, the Netherlands.

This stage included her being outfitted with a new,
state-of-the-art mast and preparations for the second
stage, for which Damen is serving as subcontractor. PNS
Bartolomeu Dias arrived at Damen’s yard on February 14 .
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“Our scope includes executing the mutually agreed
technical specifications, mainly consisiting of all the
dock-based work – steel works, underwater sections,
cosmetics, overboards, valves, piping,” states Michiel.
“Onboard a complete propulsion overhaul will take place,
REPAIR & CONVERSION carrying out replacement of 40 kilometres of and cabling
works, overhauling of HVAC systems and tending to the
cosmetics. “We are well positioned for such a project.
AN EXPLORER Not only do we have the experience and knowledge in-
house, we can also count on the support of DSNS who,
as Royal Schelde, originally built these vessels. Having
seen the high quality of this vessel 25 years down the
line, I would say they did an excellent job!” The vessel
was originally constructed as part of the RNLN’s Karel
RETURNS The class was also known as the ”M-“, or Multi-purpose,
Doorman class of frigates.

class. Each vessel was named after a famous Dutch
admiral. Upon commencing service with the Portuguese
Navy, the vessel was renamed Bartolomeu Dias after the
Portuguese nobleman and explorer; the first European to
lay anchor in South Africa.

Upon completion of the phase of works conducted by
Damen Shiprepair Vlissingen, the Bartolomeu Dias will
undergo towage back to Den Helder. There, she will
receive new weapons and communications systems and
trials, being the final stage before returning to service, in
2020, for NATO operations.