Chile may help build new Brazil’s Antarctic ship

By next Friday (Apr. 5), when expo LAAD Defence & Security 2019 is slated to end in Rio de Janeiro, the name of the Brazilian shipyard to join the international consortium to build the Brazilian Navy’s Antarctic Support Ship, NapAnt is expected to be disclosed. The other members of the consortium are the Chilean Navy and US company VSK Tactical.

The information was confirmed Tuesday (2) to Agência Brasil by lawyer Marcellus Ferreira Pinto, one of the executive directors at VSK Tactical, which is currently holding talks with two Brazilian firms.

Comandante Ferraz Station, in Antarctica. - Alan Arrais/NBR/Agência Brasil/Collection

The project for the new NApAnt is estimated to cost $500 million, but, Pinto said, the amount could be higher. The idea is to have the vessel help rebuild the Comandante Ferraz Station, maintained by Brazil in Antarctica, and destroyed by a fire in 2012.

Competitive advantage

Shipyard Astillero y Maestranzas de la Armada (Asmar), operated under Chile’s Navy, has a competitive advantage, Ferreira Pinto argued, as it has the expertise of having recently built a ship similar to Brazil’s NapAnt. “It’s a Mercosur country, and a partner of the Brazilian Navy, so we have a nice outlook for this partnership,” he said.

The consortiums planning to compete for the license to build the Brazilian Antarctic ship must submit their response to the Brazilian Navy’s Request for Application by May 13. “We hope to submit a response with the [chosen] Brazilian partner on our side,” Pinto said. The Brazilian Navy will then compile the replies and unveil the rules for a second tender offer, including the deadline, the value, and vessel details.

The winning consortium should be unveiled by July, with the possible engagement of the Chilean shipyard, training for the staff at the Brazilian shipyard, and the transfer of technology.

Military vehicles

Marcellus Ferreira Pinto also reported the possible construction of a military vehicle factory in Brazil. The project will be executed in partnership with the US Department of State and approved by the Brazilian Army. The construction will be be joined by Brazilian firms.

The first unit of Jeep’s military vehicle division in Brazil will be built in the state of Bahia, probably in the municipality of Camaçari, at an estimated cost of approximately $50 million for the assembly line. “It will be the first jeep factory in South America,” Pinto pointed out.

The vehicles will serve the Brazilian Armed Forces, police bodies, and security agencies. Even though civilians will not be given access to these vehicles, they may be used by environmental law enforcement agencies, like the Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources, Ibama.

At first, six models will be manufactured within the jeep family, with initial assembly capacity of 60 vehicles a month, which may be extended to 200, “due to market factors.”

The goal is to start production in ten months, which will lead to the generation of 50 direct jobs and 200 indirect jobs. In the second stage, the plan includes the creation of a technical and military center, for which contracts have been signed on the implementation of a gun factory, a military nanotechnology factory, and another auto plant, directed at heavy armored vehicles.