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Key Points

• The Taiwanese Navy is to receive six MCMVs, built and equipped by an international industrial team
• All six ships are to be delivered by 2024

Officials from US systems house Lockheed Martin announced at the Euronaval 2014 exhibition in Paris on 28 October that Taiwan has selected an industry team, to be led by Ching Fu Shipbuilding, to deliver six mine countermeasures vessels (MCMVs) to the Republic of China Navy (RoCN).

Publicising the news for the first time, Doug Laurendeau - business development director for undersea systems at Lockheed Martin Mission Systems and Training - told reporters that Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense (MND) had last week invited a team, to be led by Kaohsiung-based Ching Fu, to deliver the class; the team would include Lockheed Martin and Italian shipbuilder Intermarine.

Algeria has signed a contract for a new mine countermeasures vessel (MCMV), with an option for a second, as it continues a major fleet modernisation effort.

As part of its undertaking the country has introduced a new landing platform dock (LPD) vessel from Italy's Fincantieri, and ordered two frigates from Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems and corvettes from China. The corvettes are to be outfitted with Western combat systems locally.

Italy's Intermarine was reported to be in negotiations with Algeria regarding the MCMV in the second half of 2013, with senior officials of holding company Immsi indicating that a contract was close to being finalised.