On Wednesday, January 14, the Finnish shipyard Rauma Marine Constructions (RMC) laid the third multipurpose corvette of the Pohjanmaa class, designed for the Finnish Navy. According to Naval News, at the same time, metal cutting for the fourth ship of the series began at the enterprise.
"An important milestone has been reached today: all four Pohjanmaa-class multipurpose corvettes are being built simultaneously at the RMC shipyard. In addition, preparations for the production of two patrol icebreakers ordered for the US Coast Guard are in full swing," the shipyard said in a statement.
Laying the keel of the third Pohjanmaa class corvette, Finland
RMC
Rauma Marine Constructions and its subsidiary Defense Oy have received an order to build four Pohjanmaa-class corvettes as part of the Squadron 2020 project. It was assumed that production of the first of them would start in 2022, and all ships would enter service before 2027. However, the project stalled due to a lack of qualified specialists, which affected the timing of the completion of the design and the transition to the production of ships. The program is currently expected to be completed in 2029.
The Pohjanmaa-class corvettes will replace four Rauma-class high-speed missile boats built in the early 1990s, as well as three mine operators, including the former flagship of the Finnish Navy, Pohjanmaa, decommissioned nine years ago.
The lead corvette of the new generation was launched in May 2025, and now it is being completed afloat. The assembly of the second ship's hull is nearing completion.
"We have optimized our procedures and production processes to meet the requirements of our customers' complex projects," said Mika Nieminen, CEO and President of RMC.
In addition to defensive tasks, the new Pohjanmaa corvettes are supposed to protect merchant shipping and maritime infrastructure. The operating conditions in the Baltic Sea required a shallow draft (5 meters) for operations in the waters of the Finnish archipelago, as well as an ice class that allows performing tasks in winter.
Construction of the Pohjanmaa class corvette, Finland
RMC
The ships will be 114 meters long, 16.5 meters wide, and 3,800 tons in displacement. The stated crew size is 73 people (capacity is 120 people). The total capacity of the combined diesel-electric and gas turbine propulsion system will be 29 MW. The speed is 26 knots, the autonomy is two weeks.
The corvettes' armament includes 57-mm Bofors guns, Gabriel-5 anti-ship missiles manufactured by Israel Aerospace Industries, RIM-162 ESSM anti-aircraft missiles from the American Raytheon, as well as light 323-mm torpedoes and remotely controlled 12.7-mm combat modules from the Swedish Saab.
