Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) hosted a ceremony on 1 May to mark the initial cutting of steel for the first of the Philippine Navy’s (PN) two frigates.
The event took place at HHI’s shipyard in Ulsan, and it was attended by Philippine dignitaries such as defence secretary Delfin Lorenzana and Navy Flag Officer-in-Command VAdm Robert Empedrad.
Once launched in May next year, the first 2,600t frigate should be delivered to the PN in the second half of 2020. Construction of the second frigate will commence in September, with scheduled delivery in the first half of 2021.
The HDF-3000 frigate design