Israel Shipyards, on 26 August, announced it had signed an agreement with the Israeli Navy for the detailed design phase for the Reshef-class vessel.
The agreement marks the final step before a future production phase and will see Israel Shipyards present an engineering plan adapted to meet Israeli Navy requirements.
Israel Shipyards CEO Eitan Zucker said: 'We are excited and proud to have reached this advanced stage in the development of the new ship, which will very soon assist in carrying out the missions and meeting the challenges faced by the Israeli Navy in protecting the country's maritime borders.'
The Reshef-class, based on the company's S-72 design, will replace Israel's Sa'ar 4.5 vessels which have been in service for over three decades.
Israel Shipyards said all combat systems onboard the Reshef-class would be sourced from Israel's defence industry.
Reshef Class (1-5) [Israel]