Steerprop, the leading designer and manufacturer of propulsion systems for demanding conditions, is pleased to announce a new contract with Meyer Turku shipyard to supply tunnel thrusters and retractable combi thrusters for two newbuild multi-purpose patrol vessels for the Finnish Border Guard.

The Finnish Border Guard will replace three obsolete patrol vessels with two new offshore patrol vessels, similar in size to the Turva (Finnish for “protection” or “security”), the largest patrol vessel in the fleet to date. With the new vessels, capabilities will be increased to the level required by the challenging duties and operating environment of the Finnish Border Guard. The operational ability of the Border Guard in the open sea is largely based on the constant operation and readiness of multi-purpose patrol vessels. The new patrol vessels’ main purpose will be ensuring border safety and open sea patrol. Additionally, they will be able to support the important work of many other authorities at sea and in the archipelago.

“Our new patrol vessels are multi-purpose vessels that have the capacity to handle a wide range of national and international duties all year round in the diverse conditions of the Baltic Sea,” says Commander Marko Aheristo, Head of Ship Technical Unit at the Finnish Border Guard. “The vessels are also designed to meet higher emissions standards and prioritize energy efficiency, making them a practical, functional, and cost-effective solution,” Mr. Aheristo continues.

Steerprop will equip the Finnish Border Guard’s new vessels with a Steerprop combi retractable thruster and a Steerprop tunnel thruster, both delivering a power of 850 kW per unit. This will be the first delivery for the Steerprop retractable thruster series. The combi retractable thruster is a combined azimuth thruster and a tunnel thruster with a robust retracting mechanism. It enables flexible maneuvering in harbor operations when the thruster is retracted, and energy-efficient station-keeping when the thruster is deployed.

“These unique vessels called for the kind of unique expertise and customized solutions that Steerprop are so well known for in the market,” says Juho Rekola, Director, Sales and Project Management at Steerprop. “In addition, we never compromise on the reliability of our solutions, making them a perfect fit for these vessels’ demanding operations in the vulnerable Baltic Sea in which the expectations on reliability are extremely high,” Mr. Rekola explains.

“The ship propulsion and the maneuvering systems play a key role in a ship’s ability to perform demanding operations. Therefore, we are happy to expand our offering with new, high-quality Steerprop solutions to support the marine industry. By utilizing Steerprop’s expertise in Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), we are able to optimize the integration of thrusters on board to achieve maximum performance, energy efficiency, and comfort,” he continues.

The planned delivery of the equipment will be in 2024 and 2025.