The Netherlands to begin construction of new combat support ship

The cabinet of the Dutch government has submitted a D-letter to the parliament to begin the construction of the combat support ship (CSS) Zr.Ms. Den Helder, shipbuilder Damen said.

The D-letter, part of the Defense Materiel Process (DMP), is the conclusive letter announcing the procurement decision for a large military project.

With this new ship, the supply capacity of the Royal Netherlands Navy (RNLN) will once again expand to two ships.

The construction contract for the combat support ship has been awarded to Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding (DSNS).

As explained, the new CSS is based on the design of the joint support ship Zr.Ms. Karel Doorman. By taking an existing design as a basis, it is possible to deliver the ship in 2024.

The almost 200-meter-long ship will have a 75-person crew and can also take an additional 75 people on board. There will be room for several helicopters and around twenty containers, according to Damen.

The engineering of the CSS will largerly take place in the Netherlands and a large number of components will be delivered by Dutch suppliers. The CSS is built by Damen in Romania, after which the ship’s final components and the combat management system will be installed in Den Helder.

In addition to the CSS, DSNS will build the new frigates replacing the M-frigates of both the Belgian and Dutch navies. The yard was also selected last week, together with its Swedish partner Saab Kockums, for the next phase in the replacement program of the Walrus class submarines.