Latest update April 23rd, 2024 12:59 AM
Jun 07, 2013 News
Government this week approved a $32.3M contract for the docking and repairs of the army’s flagship, the GDFS Essequibo.
A former British minesweeper, the ship was acquired in 2001 by the army but underwent a $130M major overhaul in 2009 to its main and auxiliary engines by a Brazilian engineering company. The vessel is used to patrol Guyana’s territorial waters.
The ship, in the control of the army’s Coast Guard arm, has not been without mechanical troubles. Early last year, it broke down in the Essequibo River and had to be towed to Coast Guard headquarters at
Ruimveldt, Georgetown.
Parts for the particular vessel are also not easy to acquire, the army has said, as Britain is no longer making them. However, neighbouring Brazil has similar ones.
Following repairs in 2010, the army has reopened the ship to the public for its 45th anniversary celebrations.
Since its acquisition in 2001, around $350M has been spent to rehabilitate the GDFS Essequibo, a process that began in 2009 and was completed in 2010.
The ship generates its power and has its own fresh water distribution and sewage systems, among other facilities. It reportedly has the capacity to carry and maintain 50 persons on board for as many as 25 days.
The GDFS Essequibo is a River-class vessel, commissioned to the British army in 1985 under the name, Orwell. However, the entire class was eventually sold off to overseas navies, including to Guyana.
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