Kongsberg Maritime has been selected by Austal USA to supply its Promas propulsion system to the latest ship in the United States Coast Guard’s new Offshore Patrol Cutter (OPC) Heritage Class programme. The Coast Guard’s new OPC programme represents a significant investment in maritime capability and is expected to run up to 25 ships. The new vessels will replace the Coast Guard’s medium endurance cutters and meet the need for long-term offshore capability to maintain current and future mission effectiveness. This initial contract is to supply Kongsberg Maritime equipment for the fifth ship, Coast Guard Cutter Pickering, which is the first to be built by Austal USA at their yard in Mobile, Alabama.
Björn ten Eicken, Kongsberg Maritime, Vice President – Naval, said: “Kongsberg Maritime has a proud history of supplying mission critical technology to United States Coast Guard programmes. We have supplied our propulsion systems for naval and governmental forces for more than 80 years, and we’re delighted to have developed an efficient and effective system specifically suited to the challenging and varied operations of these new ships. Our Promas systems typically deliver efficiency savings of around 6%, so vessels are able to extend their range, something which can be crucial on longer missions. We’re looking forward to working with the Coast Guard and Austal USA on delivering these highly-capable ships.”
The Heritage-class cutter, also known as the Offshore Patrol Cutter and the Maritime Security Cutter, Medium, is a cutter class of the United States Coast Guard (USCG), developed as part of the Integrated Deepwater System Program and built by Eastern Shipbuilding and Austal USA. The Heritage-class cutters are the newest class of cutter in the USCG, bridging the capabilities of the Legend and Sentinel-class cutters. The design is based on Vard Marine’s VARD 7 110 offshore patrol vessel design. Construction of the first vessel in the class began in January 2019. As they are completed, it is expected that they will replace 270-foot (82 m) Famous- and 210-foot (64 m) Reliance-class Medium Endurance Cutters.
Rolls-Royce will supply the USCG Heritage-class fleet’s controllable-pitch propellers (CPP), shaft lines, and Promas rudders, which offer increased propulsive efficiency and improved maneuverability. Promas combines rudder and controllable pitch propeller into one propulsion system which optimises the hydrodynamic properties of the ship and delivers increased efficiency and thrust while using less energy. For the OPC, as well as twin Promas, Kongsberg Maritime is contracted to supply steering gear, rudders, fin stabilisers and tunnel thrusters. The OPC vessels will be able to provide long range patrol capability. At 360 feet long, they will have a displacement of 3,700 long tons, maximum speed of 22.2 knots, and a range of 9,050 nautical miles at 14 knots.
