MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Rio Santiago shipyards working on amphibious toward state ownership

The South Korean amphibious model is already in service with Peru's Navy and also produced locally

The Argentine Rio Santiago Shipyards (ARS) are making plans to build a unit for the local Navy, which might turn out to be an amphibious ship of the LPD (Landing Platform Dock) type or a tank landing ship of the LST (Landing Ship Tank) type, it was reported in Buenos Aires.

Rio Santiago has already signed an agreement with South Korea's Daewoo for the construction of an amphibious LPD vessel of the “Makassar” class, which is already operational for the Peruvian Navy: the BAP Pisco, assigned in June 2018, and the BAP Paita, still under construction. Both vessels were built at the SIMA naval complex in Callao, Peru.

The model is suitable for amphibious operations, transport and logistics, security patrol operations, humanitarian aid, assistance in natural disasters, as well as rescue and search and rescue tasks (SAR), among other functions. It is 100 meters long, 16 meters wide, and 7.75 meters deep, with a speed of 16 knots and a range of 4,000 nautical miles or 15 days of operation.

Further steps were discussed recently during a meeting featuring Defense Ministry Cabinet Chief Héctor Mazzei, Buenos Aires Governor Axel Kicillof, and representatives of the workers' unions.

In the meantime, Argentine authorities are working at a Congressional level to turn Río Santiago into a state-run company,

ATE Ensenada union leader Francisco “Pancho” Banegas, pointed out that this is “long-awaited and important news for the Río Santiago Shipyard.” He also recalled that the union organization “has been working intensely and insisting on the importance of building again for the defense” Ministry.

“It was decided that the shipowner will present the formal offer to the shipyard so that it can then be submitted to the Ministry of Defense and thus formalize the contract with ARS,” he added.

The labor grouping hopes the negotiations will be complete by November, thus guaranteeing jobs. “We thank all those who accompanied us, especially the shipyard workers who have shown their support. We will continue to fight for a shipyard with full stands,” said Banegas after ATE's pressure on the government for the reactivation of ARS “to recover the national naval industry, to stop investing abroad, and to generate jobs in the country.”

Meanwhile, the Tandanor Shipyard has announced it had completed the repair and maintenance works on the Argentine Navy's ARA Rosales (P-42) corvette and the ARA Ciudad de Rosario (Q-62) multipurpose ship.

Defense Minister Jorge Taiana was to take delivery of the repaired units alongside Navy Chief of Staff Admiral Julio Guardia. The works have been financed through Argentina's National Defense Fund (Fondef), it was reported.