Italian ship-building firm Fincantieri says it is exploring the possibility of establishing a shipyard in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa, which would strengthen existing relations with the Kenyan Navy.
In an interview with Kenyan media aboard the Italian Navy aircraft carrier ‘Cavour’ when it called at Mombasa as part of its Africa and Middle East promotional voyage, Fincantieri International Business Consultant (Naval Vessel Building Unit) Ezio Vernetti said the company hopes to set up a plant in Kenya before the end of this year.
Vernetti said that the company’s long-standing relationship with the Kenyan Navy made Mombasa an ideal choice for the African plant, which will most likely focus on the supply of new vessels and the maintenance and refurbishment of existing Kenyan naval vessels with an eye for making inroads into the continental vessel sales, refurbishment and upgrade market.
“One of our key goals and intentions for this year is to have a presence in this part of the African continent. Mombasa is ideal for us since we have long standing working relations with the Kenyan Navy. The Kenyan Navy is keen to maintain high safety standards on its ships. We hope to enter into negotiations with them on possibilities of more cooperation,” Vernetti said.
By moving to Mombasa, Fincantierri seeks to consolidate a cordial business relationship with the Kenyan Navy three years after fulfilling a contract for refurbishing the navy’s fast attack craft KNS Nyayo and KNS Umoja. As part of the mid-life refurbishment process, Fincantieri replaced approximately a third of the structure on each vessel and rebuilt their hulls. The company also worked on the propulsion systems, propellers, electrical equipment, furnishings, installation and flooring. It replaced all the command and control equipment on the vessels and installed new equipment, including Furano navigation radar. Fincantieri also removed the four launchers for the Oto Melara/Matra Otomat Mk 2 SSM system.
Since then, the Kenyan Navy has done business with two subsidiaries of Finmeccanica Group companies – Oto Melara and Simmel Defence.
The ‘Cavour’, which is accompanied by three support ships, is on a tour of Middle Eastern and African ports where it is promoting the sale of mostly military hardware with on-board exhibitions by various companies.
Commenting on the KNS Nyayo and Umoja upgrade, Fincantieri said the contract indicated its interest in the African market where there is a significant growth in demand for new vessels for navies and coast guards in light of terrorism, piracy and illegal fishing.
