The Bahraini navy has selected Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB) to build four landing craft, the second such deal between the two entities. ADSB, which acts as a shipbuilder and repair yard for both military and commercial clients, said the contract was in the "multimillion dollar" range. ADSB, with its Musaffah shipyard equipped with both steel and composites manufacturing, said it beat out bids from several international rivals for the construction of two 42-metre long landing craft, and two smaller landing craft measuring 16 metres long. The vessels will be used to transport troops, vehicles and cargo and are designed for landing on Gulf beaches.
The shipbuilder is seeking to diversify away from UAE contracts and has targeted GCC navies as potential clients. William Saltzer, the chief executive of ADSB, said the contract demonstrated the company was emerging as a "recognised supplier and service provider for the GCC maritime military markets." Last year Bahrain awarded ADSB with a contract to retrofit and upgrade ten coastguard patrol boats.
ADSB was formed in 1995 with Newport News, a major US shipbuilder. ADSB's largest contract, the US$1 billion (Dh3.6 bn) Baynunah project, is with the UAE military for the production of six 72-metre long corvettes, which are small, manoeuverable, lightly armed warships. igale@thenational.ae