In November 2019, an intergovernmental agreement between France and Ukraine has been signed to support the reinforcement of the maritime safety and security in Ukraine. The launching ceremony of the BG201, the first OCEA FPB 98 MKI of a fleet of twenty units, took place this Thursday, December 9th, 2021 at OCEA site in Les Sables d’Olonne. OCEA won the international consultation launched by the Ukrainian Ministry of Interior. The acquisition contract is for 20 patrol vessels of 32 m type OCEA FPB 98 MKI to ensure the country’s sovereignty in the Sea of Azov and the Black Sea.
His Excellency, Mr. Vadym OMELCHENKO, Ambassador of Ukraine in France, and representative of the French Government were present at the ceremony. The first vessel is to arrive from France to Odessa in Ukraine next spring. The OCEA FPB 98 MKI are planned to be deployed in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. Five of the twenty FPB 98 MKI vessels ordered will be built by Nibulon Shipyard, in Ukraine in Mykolaiv. The fleet is accompanied by a set of services including crew training, ship maintenance and technical assistance to the customer during the warranty phase. the FPB 98 is 32 metres long and six metres wide, has a crew of 14 and a top speed of 20-35 knots with a range of 1 200 nautical miles at 12 knots.
The OCEA FPB MKI are vessels designed by OCEA for Maritime Safety missions from one to two weeks within the Exclusive Economic Zone. Designed to operate as a real naval base at sea, these self-sufficient vessels display key design technologies. Thanks to a combination of high speed and endurance, the high level of equipment and comfort enable the monitoring of a large operational area and the coordination of operations such as: territorial and deep-sea surveillance operations, Smuggling and illegal immigration control, Control of vessels at sea, SAR and Natural resources and blue economy protection.
OCEA and the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (SBGSU) inked a € 136.5 million contract for the procurement patrol boats on July 22, 2020. Ukrainian and French governments were negotiating for the joint production of 20 FPB 98 patrol boats designed by the OCEA shipyard in June 2019. The Government of Ukraine finally gave its green light for the procurement of the patrol vessels in November that year. Five of which will be built directly in Ukraine, in Mykolaiv. It was announced last month that local shipyard Nibulon Shipbuilding has been selected to build five of the patrol vessels.
