Mr. Simon Coveney, T.D., Minister for Defence and Minister for Foreign Affairs has announced the publication of a competitive public procurement procedure for the provision of Marine Advisor Services to support the procurement of a Multi-Role Vessel.

Minister Coveney stated:

I am pleased to announce the publication of this request for tender. It marks the important next step in progressing the vital project to replace the Naval Service Flagship – LÉ Eithne. This follows a period of planning and internal engagement across the Defence Organisation, ensuring that all needs have been considered in the development of a Concept of Operations for this important asset.

It is the intention that the new vessel will be able to contribute across a number of Defence roles, with a design specification capable of providing a flexible and adaptive capacity for a wide range of tasks, both at home and overseas.  It is planned that it will be enabled for helicopter operations and will have a freight carrying capacity.

The procurement of the MRV is in strategic alignment with Government Policy as set out in the White Paper on Defence. The MRV is included in the Government National Development Plan as a major capital project and is an important element of the Defence Equipment Development Plan.

The tender has been published on the current edition (66/2021) of the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) (Ref: 2021/S 066-171530 Marine Advisor Services to support the procurement of a Multi-Role Vessel) with a closing date of 12 noon on 11 May 2021.

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