Piriou delivers the second OPV Niani to the Senegalese Armed Forces
PIRIOU delivered this day the second unit of the OPV 58 S class vessel program for the Senegalese Navy, in the presence of Mr Oumar Youm – Minister of the Armed Forces of Senegal, His Excellency the Ambassador of Senegal in France El Hadji i Magatte Seye, Admiral Oumar Wade – Private Chief of Staff of the President of the Republic of Senegal and Admiral Abdou Sene – Chief of Staff of the Senegalese Navy.
The contract, signed in November 2019, covered the acquisition of three offshore patrol vessels. After the WALO, delivered last June, and while the CAYOR is being fitted out in Concarneau, the NIANI is now flying the Senegalese flag.
The handover ceremony was an opportunity for Vincent Faujour to warmly thank the new Minister of the Armed Forces, Mr Oumar Youm, for having done him the honour of choosing Concarneau for his first official visit to France. “You have played a major role in this partnership, which bears witness to the long-standing military cooperation between our two nations,” he said, pointing out that he and Admiral Wade had been involved in the project from the outset. He also welcomed the presence of Fodé Sylla, Senegal’s ambassador-at-large, former Member of the European Parliament, and former President of SOS Racisme, as well as the presence of Admiral Cyril Palfray Aubin de Jaurias, Commander of the Brest-Lorient defence base, and Lysiane Métayer, Member of the National Defence and Armed Forces Committee of The French National Assembly.
Expressing his gratitude for their confidence, the President of the PIRIOU Group said that “the Senegal program has strengthened PIRIOU’s position as a major player in the construction of armed vessels, opening up new perspectives both for the Group and for Kership, the industrial prime contractor for the program."
The President of PIRIOU was also keen to pay tribute to the commitment of the teams working to ensure that this program runs as efficiently as possible. The NIANI will join, ahead of schedule, the first of the series, the WALO, celebrated in Dakar last August in the presence of His Excellency President Maky Sall. Measuring the responsibility placed on the Senegalese Navy, he reaffirmed: “We are fully aware of the imperative need to guarantee the highest level of quality and availability of your ships. We are working on this, here in Concarneau, but also in Dakar.”
Mr Omar Youm stated that “the acquisition of three offshore patrol vessels is an excellent demonstration of the significant investments made by the State of Senegal, at the initiative of His Excellency Mr Macky SALL, President of the Republic and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces. The WALO has made a definite added value in the field of maritime surveillance in depth and the acquisition of information of maritime interest. {It} has participated steadily in maritime border surveillance operations, the protection of offshore oil and gas installations, fisheries surveillance and, above all, the fight against illegal emigration."
The entry into service of the NIANI will undoubtedly help to strengthen the permanent security posture of the naval forces, of which the 58 S OPVs are the backbone.
This article was originally published on Marine & Industrial Report newspaper Vol 45 No.6 Issue last December 31, 2023.
