Portugal contracts Damen for multi-purpose vessel designed for integrated uncrewed air and sea systems
The new ship will have a heavy focus on deploying unmanned vehicles. (Image: Damen Shipyards)
The new ship’s primary roles will be search and rescue, emergency relief and oceanic research but will also be used for naval support operations and maritime safety.
Damen Shipyards Group will design and build a 107-metre long Multi-Purpose Vessel (MPV) with 650sqm cargo deck and space for 12 20-foot containers for the Portuguese Navy.
The ship will be named NRP D. João II and will be expected to enter service in 2026.
The MPV, classified by the Portuguese Navy as a Multifunctional Naval Platform (PNM), will be used for naval support operations and maritime safety, but its primary role will be for emergency relief, search and rescue, and oceanic research.
Key features of the platform include a large deck for helicopters, a stern ramp for Unmanned Underwater Vehicles and Unmanned Surface Vehicles), and a 94x11-metre flight deck and hangars for UAVs.
The large cargo deck and space for 12 20-foot containers means modular systems such as containerised hospital facilities, hyperbaric chambers, or ROV equipment could be installed as required.
The Portuguese Navy currently has two Damen-built vessels in service. These are the 122m long Bartolomeu Dias-class multi-purpose frigates NRP Bartolomeu Dias and NRP D. Francisco de Almeida. Both vessels originally served in the Royal Netherlands Navy (as Karel Doorman class frigates) before undergoing a substantial modernisation programme by Damen and the Dutch Command Materiel and IT agency.
Related Programmes in Defence Insight
Plataforma Naval Multifuncional [Portugal]
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Naval Warfare
-
![Lessons shaping the next phase of Arleigh Burke production post-Flight IIA]()
Lessons shaping the next phase of Arleigh Burke production post-Flight IIA
The accelerated delivery of the final Flight IIA destroyer, USS Patrick Gallagher, showcases the payoff of years of workforce investment and process reform at Bath Iron Works, with the lessons feeding into Flight III production.
-
![Ukraine war drives ‘minimum deployable capability’ doctrine in uncrewed systems development]()
Ukraine war drives ‘minimum deployable capability’ doctrine in uncrewed systems development
Ukraine’s battlefield has rewritten the rules of uncrewed systems development. For Syos Aerospace, real-time operator feedback, lean serial production and a system-of-systems philosophy are central to its operating model.
-
![Sealift shortfalls set to drive opportunities across NATO navies]()
Sealift shortfalls set to drive opportunities across NATO navies
A new Council on Geostrategy primer warns that NATO cannot defend its own supply lines. As the alliance faces a sealift and logistics escort deficit, a wave of unawarded procurement is beginning to take shape.
-
![AUKUS advance on UUVs contrasts with Virginia-class compromise]()
AUKUS advance on UUVs contrasts with Virginia-class compromise
The AUKUS partnership is accelerating uncrewed undersea capability while its submarine arm inches forward, and Australia’s decision to settle for three in-service Virginia-class boats raises questions about industrial risk, dependency and whether Pillar II may deliver meaningful capability long before Pillar I can.
