Goa Shipyard hands over fast patrol vessel to Mauritius govt

Goa Shipyard has delivered first fast patrol vessel in record time to Mauritius government, giving a fillip to defence cooperation between the countries, the Shipping Ministry said today.
"Indo-Mauritian Defence Cooperation got another fillip with the delivery of first Fast Patrol Vessel, MCGS Victory, designed and built in-house by Goa Shipyard Limited for Mauritius Coast Guard, on September 25, 2016," the ministry said in a statement.
The vessel is primarily designed for coastal patrolling, anti-piracy, anti-smuggling, anti-drug Surveillance, anti-poaching operations, and search and rescue operations.
"The vessel is 50 meter long, fitted with 30 mm CRN-91 Gun, 12.7 mm HMGs & 7.62 mm MMGs besides state-of-the-art Navigation and Communication equipment and is capable of achieving a high speed of 35 knots," the statement said.

The contract for the vessel was signed on May 17, 2014, and the keel of this vessel was laid on December 18, 2014.
"Despite all the challenges, including delay of over six months in supply of steel and being the first ship of the series, we have successfully delivered this ship as per contractual schedule of Sept, 2016, i.E. Within 20 months of keel laying which is a record in itself, and is in line with the track record of GSL in recent years of timely deliveries and shows the dedication and commitment of all the stakeholders involved," Goa Shipyard CMD Shekhar Mital said.

GSL is the largest exporter of ships from the Indian subcontinent and is presently executing export orders worth Rs crore.