Vessels cost US$35m each

UPDATE:

TWO Cape Class vessels which Government is seeking to buy for the Coast Guard cost US$35 million each.
A senior government official made this comment in response to a newspaper article which said the vessels cost US$74 million.
A second government official said negotiations for the vessels are ongoing and no decision has been made as yet.

Australian shipbuilder Austal is the manufacturer of the two Cape Class vessels.
The Prime Minister announced Government’s decision to buy the vessels at a news conference at Coast Guard headquarters at Staubles Bay on July 26.
Dr Rowley said they will be used for long-range patrols and are to be accessed through a $2 billion fund for export loan agreements, set up by the Australian government to increase the ease of access of Australian-built equipment to other Commonwealth states.

A report on navaltoday.com on Monday announced the Government’s intention to acquire the vessels from Austal but did not indicate whether an agreement had been reached for the vessels’ acquisition.
The report claimed the order for the vessels “is likely to be valued at circa AU (Australian) $100 million (US$74 million) multi-year ongoing maintenance and support package.”

According to the report, “An initial lower value design contract will be signed shortly to hasten preparations for the main contract and ensure that the delivery schedule will be maintained.
The Cape Class vessels are expected to be delivered in mid-2020 and are to be built at Austal’s Henderson shipyard in Western Australia.

They will complement six fast patrol boats acquired from Austal by Government in 2009.
An Austal team was in TT recently to inspect these boats and develop ways to get them operational again.
The PM has said they were left to deteriorate under the People’s Partnership government.

ORIGINAL STORY:

TWO Cape Class vessels which Government is seeking to purchase for the Coast Guard cost US$35 million each.

This was the information today provided by a senior government official regarding a daily newspaper report which claimed the vessels cost US$74 million. A second government official said negotiations for the vessels, which are manufactured by Australian shipbuilder Austal, are still in progress at this time.

The Prime Minister announced Government's decision to purchase these vessels at a news conference at the Coast Guard's headquarters at Staubles Bay on July 26. Dr Rowley said these vessels will be used to conduct long-range patrols.

The PM said they are to be accessed through a $2 billion fund for export loan agreements, set up by the Australian government in increasing the ease of access of Australian-built equipment to other Commonwealth states.

He also indicated the TT Express would be sold and two other vessels would be acquired for use on the seabridge.