Sefine is in charge of the development of the DIMDEG project which consists of the construction of one vessel, the future ‘TCG Derya’, meant to the Turkish Navy. The ship’s building and outfitting are currently undergoing at Sefine Shipyard in Altinova – a town located nearby Istanbul.
The company was awarded the contract in 2018 by SSB, which put out a tender in 2016, meeting Turkish requirements “to meet the fuel, water transport and supply needs of surface units in the open seas around the world”.
DIMDEG’s main missions include replenishment at sea (RAS) and have been designed for assistance tasks, such as humanitarian aid, search and rescue, non-combatant evacuation operation, as well as medical support. However, the vessel can serve as a command ship and support combat operations including naval air operations, defence against asymmetric threats, and support amphibious operations.
According to Sefine’s spokesperson, the vessel will have the capability of resupplying three ships at the same time and resupplying helicopters via air.
Sefine is working with several Turkish companies including Aselsan for the autonomous unmanned vehicles (AUV) that could be deployed from the ship, and which can be equipped with different payloads such as torpedoes, anti-ship missiles, rockets, jammers, etc. Aselsan is also responsible for many electronic systems of the ship, Havelsan and Turkish Lloyd are also part of the project.
Originally scheduled to enter service in 2023, the DIMDEG appears to enter service with the Turkish Navy in 2024, according to recent statements by Turkish officials.
Sefine provided the following data regarding the specifications of the ship:
- Length: 195 meters
- Beam: 24.4 meters
- Displacement: 26 000 tonnes
- Max Speed: 24+ knots
- Range: 4500 nautical miles
- Crew: 162
- Weapons: 2xCIWS and 2x25mm gun (STOP)
The propulsion system will include two controllable pitch propellers (CPP), General Electric will provide two LM2500 marine gas turbines, and two other diesel engines to power the vessel.
