Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding has held a keel laying ceremony for new Sigma 10514 long range patrol vessel for the Mexican Navy, the company announced on Thursday. The Sigma-class frigate is a Dutch-built family of modular naval vessels, of frigate size. Sigma 10514 Frigates are more than 344.8 feet long, bout 46 feet in the beam and have a maximum cruise speed of 28 knots. The basic design of the Sigma Patrol Series can vary as the hull segments are designed as components. Ships can vary in the number of hull segments and in the order in which they are placed. Sigma stands for Ship Integrated Geometrical Modularity Approach.
The vessel for Mexico will be modular, with activities taking place in both countries. Two of the six modules will be constructed in the Netherlands and four in Mexico.
The ceremony of Thursday at Vlissingen, the Netherlands was attended by Mexican Secretary of National Defense, General Salvador Cienfuegos and Mexico’s Secretary of the Navy Admiral Vidal Francisco Soberón Sanz.
“The Mexican Navy is a long-standing client of Damen and currently operates no fewer than 10 Damen vessels in its fleet,” the company said in a press release. “The project for a Sigma 10514 was signed earlier this year.”
“We are extremely proud to have been chosen for this high-profile project,” a spokesperson for Damen said after the ceremony. “This vessel will once again demonstrate Damen’s capabilities to build for any country in the world in order to meet client requirements.”
“The Sigma 10514 will play a key role in the Mexican Navy’s plans to modernize its fleet.”