On Friday 4th August 2023, in Varna, the Bulgarian shipbuilder MTG Dolphin Shipyard PLC launched the first of the two new 2,300-ton corvettes / multi-purpose modular patrol vessels (MMPV) 90 for the Bulgarian Navy, under the management of the German shipbuilder NVL Group (formerly known as Lürssen Defence) which is the prime contractor of the project and with the involvement of numerous Bulgarian suppliers.
The name of the new vessel will be HRABRI with pennant no 12. She is a proud inheritor of the Bulgarian Navy’s torpedo boat of the same name from the beginning of 20th century. The second ship will be named SMELI with pennant no 11 replacing the Soviet Union built Koni Class Frigate bearing the same name and pennant no.
BNG SMELI 11 entering Haifa, Israel back to 8th December, 2020.
The corvettes, which are about 90 meters long (hence the designation MMPV 90) and with a beam of 13.5 meters, are being built under a contract signed with Germany’s NVL Group on 12 November 2020 valued at €420 million excluding weapon systems and ammunition.
BNG DRAZKI 41, former Belgian Navy Frigate leaving Haifa, Israel back to 12th December, 2018.
The two vessels are being built in parallel. The cutting of the steel for the first MMPV was held on December 3, 2021 at MTG Dolphin in Varna while for the second vessel was held about a year later on December 14, 2022. The keel of the first MMPV was laid on June 17, 2022 and almost a year later, on June 22, 2023 the keel-laying of the second vessel took place. Delivery of the first vessel is scheduled for the third quarter of 2025, and the second vessel a year later.
BNG VERNI 42, former Belgian Navy Frigate entering Haifa, Israel back to 4th November, 2019.
Timeline Photo by MTG Dolphin PLC.
