Sign of the times: Bulgarian shipyard cuts first steel on MMPVs
A ceremony was held on 3 December at the MTG Dolphin shipyard in Varna to mark steel being cut for the first of two new Bulgarian Navy MMPVs. (Photo: MTG Dolphin)
Construction of two new 90m-long modular multimission patrol vessels is just one aspect of naval modernisation in Bulgaria.
In a further sign that the Bulgarian Navy is moving away from reliance on ageing Soviet-era platforms, the MTG Dolphin shipyard in Varna is building two new Multipurpose Modular Patrol Vessels (MMPVs) after first steel was cut in a ceremony on 3 December.
The two vessels are being built under a November 2020 deal between the Bulgarian MoD and German shipbuilder Lürssen Werft, which established a Bulgarian subsidiary called NVL.
Importantly for RAdm Kiril Mihaylov, Commander of Bulgarian Naval Forces, the MMVPs are designed to operate within the framework of the NATO alliance or as part of EU missions, enabling
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