Navantia achieves milestone, completes shock tests for F110 frigate’s electric propulsion system

Spanish shipbuilder Navantia has unveiled that the F110 frigate’s electric propulsion motor and converter passed their shock tests.

On November 28, 2024, the barge shock tests of the electric motor and frequency converter of the F110 frigate’s propulsion were successfully completed.

Following the shock tests completed in October for the diesel generator, the main switchboard, and the fuel purifier module, all the tests planned to be carried out on barges for the F110 Program propulsion system were completed, Navantia noted.

Once again, the tests were carried out on the barge “Shock Test Vehicle STV02” that Thornton Tomasetti Defence Ltd (TTDL) uses for this type of shock test at the Limehillock facilities in Scotland.

The work team included representatives from Navantia and TTDL, as well as Ingeteam, manufacturer of the equipment tested. Representatives from the Ministry of Defense, the F110 Program Office of the Directorate General of Armament and Material (DGAM) and the North American company Element. Element acts as a third-party company that overlooks tests the correlation between the test carried out in Scotland (British regulations) and the one to be carried out in the USA (MIL regulations).

All the equipment subjected to the barge shock tests in Scotland has been transported by sea and returned to Navantia’s shipyard in Ferrol, from where they will be sent to their respective factories of origin for reconditioning and additional factory tests, Navantia said.

To remind, Navantia signed a contract, valued at €4.325 million., for the construction of five F110 frigates for the Spanish Navy. The F-110 frigates will be versatile multi-purpose vessels with anti-air, anti-surface, and anti-submarine capabilities.

Designed for force protection and naval projection, they will operate alongside other units for maritime security. Advanced features include an integrated mast with sensors and antennas, a multi-mission space for expanded defense capabilities, and a new hybrid propulsion system. The frigates will be equipped with the Spanish combat system, SCOMBA, developed by Navantia Systems.

The keel-laying ceremony for the first frigate was held in August 2023, while the steel-cutting ceremony for the second vessel in this class took place in December 2023.