PCG’s first multipurpose response vessel launched at Japan shipyard

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Philippine Coast Guard multi-role response vessel
Launch ceremony for the first multi-role response vessel of the Philippine Coast Guard. The MRRV measures about 96.6 meters, has a maximum speed of not less than 24 knots, and has an endurance of not less than 4,000 nautical miles. Photo from Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
  • The first of two multi-role response vessels (MRRV) for the Philippine Coast Guard was launched at the Shimonoseki Shipyard in Japan on July 26, 2021
  • The first MRRV is expected to arrive in Manila by March 2022 while the second vessel will arrive by May 2022
  • Vessels will be utilized for severe-weather rescue missions and patrolling in offshore and coastal zones, enhancing rapid response capabilities for maritime accidents and crime
  • Each MRRV has an overall length of 96.6 meters, has a maximum speed of not less than 24 knots, and has an endurance of not less than 4,000 nautical miles
  • The MRRVs are part of a maritime safety project funded by a Japanese official development assistance loan amounting to about JPY16.455 billion
  • The two MRRVs will be the largest vessels in PCG’s fleet and are expected to improve the agency’s maritime security and maritime safety capabilities

The first of two multi-role response vessels (MRRVs) acquired by the Department of Transportation (DOTr) for the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) has been launched at the Shimonoseki Shipyard of Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co. Ltd. in Japan on July 26, 2021.

The christening and handover of the first vessel is scheduled for May 2022 after cruising to Manila in early March, following outfitting work and trial runs. The launch ceremony for the second vessel is scheduled for November 18, 2021, with christening and handover planned for September 2022 after cruising to Manila in May 2022.

This vessel was later to be christened the MRRV Teresa Magbanua.

The MRRVs are part of the Maritime Safety Capability Improvement Project Phase II, a Japanese-assisted project funded by an official development assistance loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency amounting to about JPY16.455 billion.

Once delivered, the two MRRVs will be the largest vessels in the PCG’s fleet. The MRRVs were modeled after the Japan Coast Guard Kunigami-class vessels and are expected to improve the PCG’s maritime security and maritime safety capabilities.

Each MRRV has an overall length of 96.6 meters, has a maximum speed of not less than 24 knots, and has an endurance of not less than 4,000 nautical miles.

PCG commandant Admiral George Ursabia, Jr. noted that the addition of the two MRRVs will strengthen the Philippines’ maritime security and maritime safety capabilities.

The ships are capable of conducting sustained maritime patrols in the country’s maritime jurisdictions, including the West Philippine Sea and the Philippine Rise.

The two vessels will significantly boost PCG capabilities in conducting maritime search and rescue, maritime law enforcement, and humanitarian assistance and disaster response operations.

Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade said the new vessels will also be used to help in responding to maritime incidents in the country’s waters and exclusive economic zone, such as in search and rescue operations and maritime security patrols, as well as in enforcing marine environmental laws, among others.

DOTr and Mitsubishi Shipbuilding signed the contact for the design, construction, and delivery of the two MRRVs in December 2019 and the contract became effective on May 8, 2020. Phase one of the project was signed in 2013 and involved the procurement of ten 40-meter PCG patrol vessels.

(Updated on June 13, 2022, 2:01pm, to include the name of the vessel, MRRV Teresa Magbanua.)