According to information published by NVL Group on December 3, 2021, the German firm, formerly Lürssen Defence, and its local shipyard partner MTG Dolphin, joined representatives of the contracting authority to launch the construction of the first of two Multipurpose Modular Patrol Vessels (MMPV) for the Bulgarian Navy in Varna, Bulgaria.
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Artist rendering of MMPV 90 (Picture source: NVL Group)
The highlight of the traditional steel-cutting ceremony was the power-up of the plasma cutting system for the first steel cut. Both vessels are being built at MTG Dolphin in Varna under the management of NVL Group and with the involvement of numerous Bulgarian suppliers.
The vessels, which are around 90 meters long, with around 2,300 tons of displacement, are based on a proven design from the NVL portfolio and feature an integrated Combat Management System.
The units are predestined for tasks within the framework of international alliance missions of NATO and the EU and enable the Bulgarian Navy to counter air- and land-based threats as well as surface and undersea threats.
The MMPV project, with a total volume of around 420 million euros, is currently the largest new-build project of the Bulgarian Navy. Delivery of the first vessel is scheduled for the third quarter of 2025, and the second vessel a year later.
The ships' design is loosely based on the German Braunschweig-class corvette that is Germany's newest class of ocean-going corvettes. The vessels have a displacement of 1,840 tonnes (1,810 long tons) and a length of 89.12 m (292 ft 5 in).
