Today in Mumbay there was the commissioning ceremony for the “Deepak”, the first of two fleet tankers ordered from Fincantieri by the Indian Navy.
Present at the ceremony were A.K. Antony, the Indian Minister of the Defence, Admiral Nirmal Varma, Chief of Naval Staff of the Indian Navy, and Corrado Antonini, Chairman of Fincantieri. The order is the first surface vessel India has ordered from a European company, gained in competition against prominent international players, in particular from Russia and Korea.
With a displacement at full load of 27,500 tonnes, the 175 metre long fleet tanker, with a beam of 25 metres and a height of 19, has two 10,00 kW diesel engines for propulsion and can reach a maximum speed of 20 knots. Further features include a propulsion system with an adjustable propeller and a flight deck for medium-heavy helicopters (up to 10 tons).
