T. Mariotti press release
T. Mariotti has been awarded the public tender procedure in favour of the Italian Navy for the construction of two auxiliary units of the type Coastal Motor Transport and Lighthouse Servicing (MTC/MTF) and has signed the construction contract with the Naval Armaments Directorate of the General Secretariat of Defence/DNA.
The shipyard is currently engaged in the construction of the SDO-SuRS (Special and Diving Operations – Submarine Rescue Ship) – the first military order won by T. Mariotti, part of the Genova Industrie Navali Group – and with this achievement consolidates its presence in the Defence sector.
The two new ships, part of a larger programme of acquisitions, will guarantee support to the maintenance activities of the Lighthouse Service and maritime signalling, as well as the transport of vehicles, personnel, and solid and liquid cargo in national and international waters. The two units will be characterised by a high degree of flexibility in use and modularity, with technical and construction features that will enable them to carry out the operational activities for which they will be intended, ensuring a set of “functionalities” that can be integrated and activated as required, through the embarkation of deployable modules in the aft working area.
Marco Giglione , CEO of T. Mariotti said:
“After the construction of the SDO-SuRS vessel, T. Mariotti is pleased to confirm the continuation of the collaboration with the Italian Navy. The construction of two new MTC/MTF units is a tangible sign of continuity for us. We are proud to contribute to the positive effects that these orders will bring to the related industries, to the city of Genoa and to the prestige of Made in Italy,”
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Naval News comments:
Within the renewal plan of its fleet of smaller auxiliary and training ships, the Italian Navy has launched a programme to replace the Gorgona and Ponza classes of respectively Coastal Motor Transport and Lighthouse Servicing (MTC/MTF or Moto Trasporto Costiero/Moto Trasporto Fari) vessels with a single class of ten new platforms capable to conduct the current and new missions requested by the Italian Navy.
The contract awarded by NAVARM to T. Mariotti shipyard (which is expected to be worth €138 million) not only includes the design, construction and delivery of the first two MTC/MTFs but also the integrated logistic support (ILS) and Temporary Support (TS) for the first three service years and the new infrastructures for the ships mooring and on-shore support at the Italian Navy’s facilities in the port of Naples.
Naval News understood that an undisclosed third party company acting as subcontractor of T. Mariotti will be responsible for the latter infrastructures activities.
Mine laying missions
The main missions to be conducted by the new platforms include minelaying, support to training and operational activities of the Italian Navy’s special forces and diving groups of the COMSUBIN command, the IT MCM Command and support to other Ministries (such as national emergencies), general transport and system testing, lighthouse support.
According to the tender documentation, the new platforms feature a design derived from AHTS (Anchor Handling Tug Supply) vessels with a projected length and beam of respectively 63 and 12 m, and a full load displacement of circa 1,550 tonnes compared to the 800 tonnes of the Gorgona class vessels which has a length and beam of 56.7 and 10 m.
The new MTC/MTF will have a service life of 30 years and an integrated fully electric propulsion (IFEP) system with diesel generators providing power to the ship systems and two electric motors driving azimuthal propellers, offering a maximum speed of over 12 knots and an endurance of 2,000 nm at 12 knots according to tender documentation. To enhance manoeuvrability, the new platforms will have two bow thruster and to comply with RINA DYNAPOS-DP2 annotation, featuring a Differential GPS-based system to provide the necessary precise positioning for the requested missions. To accomplish them, the new MTC/MCF will have an aft working deck with a stern 30-tonnes ramp and space for up to eight ISO 20’ containers or other materiel for a 110 tonnes payload. These are embarked/disembarked by a main 30 tonnes offshore crane with a 10 m arm sided by four secondary offshore cranes, the two most capable to lift 5 tonnes.
To accomplish the minelaying mission, an undisclosed containerized (ISO 20’ and 10’) system will be used for control, transportation and delivery, while autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and decompression chamber together with remotely operated vehicles in containerized packages are among the payloads for other missions. Naval News believes this solution will be provided by SH Defense in partnership with RWM Italia S.p.A.
The new MTC/MFC will have accommodations for up to 46 persons (ca 50% more than Gorgona-class vessels) including 30 crew members and the remaining operators for the mission payloads and activities. The forward ship section includes the main bridge and after working deck control station in addition to the two 7.33 m RHIB launch and recovery areas, operational and crew accommodation areas. The command, surveillance, navigation and communication package will include two dual (X/Ka) band search and navigation radars while the ship management system (SMS) will supervise all platform systems, propulsion, auxiliary and damage control. The new ship will be also equipped with an underwater vehicles geo-localization system (HiPAP 502) and single and multibeam echosounders for the seabed surveillance (up to 2,000 m) and will be fitted-for to embark a remotely operated small calibre gun (SCG) in addition to two manually operated machine guns stations.