A Suriname Coast Guard FPB 98 patrol boat (Credit: OCEA)
The US Naval Institute News Service reports,
France is set to provide 40 patrol vessels and logistical support to the Philippine Coast Guard following the approval of a $438 million aid project to enhance Manila’s maritime security capabilities across the country’s waters.
The French official development assistance-funded acquisition project of 40 Fast Response Crafts, approved during Tuesday’s National Economic and Development Authority Board meeting, will effectively quadruple the Philippine Coast Guard’s fleet.
The craft are reported to be 30-35 meters in length. 20 are to be built in France and 20 in the Philippines.
There are no specifications for the patrol boats included in the article, but it does state that OCEA is expected be the French shipbuilder that will provide the design and build the first 20. OCEA has already committed to building a shipyard in the Philippines and has previously built vessels for the Philippine Coast Guard (here and here).
There is a good chance the new patrol boats will look a lot like the one pictured above, a class built for Suriname, Algeria, Ukraine, and French Customs. They are powered by two 3,660 HP Caterpillar diesels using waterjets. Specs on the Algerian boats as follows.
- Displacement: 100 tons
- Length: 31.8 meters (104’4″)
- Beam: 6.3 meters (20’8″)
- Draft: 1.2 meters (3’11”)
- Speed: 30 knots
- Range: 900 nmi @ 14 knots
- Crew: 13
These will be faster and more maneuverable than most of the China Coast Guard and maritime militia vessels that contest Philippines sovereignty in the South China Sea. If they can stand up against Chinese water cannon, they should be a valuable asset.
The Philippine Coast Guard is still not arming even their largest vessels with anything larger than .50 caliber.