Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri held a keel laying ceremony for the first Qatari Navy Doha-class corvette at its Muggiano shipyard on Tuesday.
The ceremony was attended, among others, by Brig. Mubarak Al Sulaiti, Deputy Chief of the Flotilla, on behalf of the Chief of the Navy, welcomed by Angelo Fusco, executive vice president naval vessels business unit of Fincantieri.
The corvette officially started construction in a steel-cutting ceremony in July this year and will be delivered in 2021. It will perform a range of tasks, from surveillance with sea rescue capacities to being a fighting vessel.
The corvettes will be about 107 meters long, 14.70 meters wide, with a maximum speed of 28 knots. They are equipped with a combined diesel and diesel turbine plant (CODAD) accommodate 112 persons on board, with a crew of 98. High-speed boats such as RHIBs will be launched through lateral cranes or a hauling ramp located at the far stern while the flight deck and hangar are sized for hosting one NH90 helicopter.
The corvette is built under a larger, 4-billion-euro contract which will see the Italian shipbuilder deliver a total of seven surface vessels: four corvettes, one amphibious vessel (landing platform dock) and two offshore patrol vessels.