Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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Question 48: To ask the Minister for Defence the progress he expects to make during 2009 in regard to the acquisition by the Naval Service of modern new replacement vessels; if the plan will be delayed by the cuts in the funding for his Department announced in the 2009 budget; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24698/09]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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Question 378: To ask the Minister for Defence if the naval service is adequately equipped and upgraded to meet any likely requirements such as participation in international operations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25239/09]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions number 48 and 378 together.

The Naval Service provides the maritime element of the Defence Forces and has a general responsibility to meet contingent and actual maritime Defence requirements.

In the 2000 White Paper on Defence, the Government decided that the Naval Service would be based on an 8-ship flotilla and committed to a modernisation and replacement strategy to maximise the operational capacity of those 8 vessels consistent with the roles assigned to the Naval Service. All eight ships are involved in coastal and offshore patrolling and surveillance for the State in that part of the seas where State jurisdiction applies such as Internal Waters, Territorial Sea and the Irish Sector of the Exclusive Economic Zone. As a matter of standing policy, Naval Service assets are not deployed on overseas peace support operations and there are no plans to develop such capacity at this time.

The White Paper specifically provides that "New vessels will be brought on stream to replace older ones as these fall due for replacement". Naval Service Vessels are replaced when they have come to the end of their useful life, which is normally around 30 years. Three ships are due for replacement now and over the next few years - LE Emer, commissioned in 1978, LE Aoife, commissioned in 1979 and LE Aisling, commissioned in 1980.

Following a detailed examination of the needs of the Naval Service within my Department a vessel replacement strategy for the Naval Service was put in place.

Following Government approval in July 2007, a tender competition for the purchase of replacement vessels for the Naval Service commenced. The competition is for the purchase of two Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) with an option of a third and one Extended Patrol Vessel (EPV) with an option on a second. The options provide an effective value for money opportunity, at locked in prices, to provide replacements for Naval Service vessels, which will reach the end of their service life in the years immediately following the current replacement programme.

Following a short-listing process, detailed tender responses were returned to my Department by the shipbuilders on the 11 November 2008.

The Tender evaluation commenced immediately and continued for a number of weeks, with the assistance of consultants who were engaged under contract. A preferred bidder was selected, after which detailed and extensive contract negotiations commenced and are now close to conclusion. No contract has yet been signed. However, I expect to bring this matter to Government very shortly.

Subject to Government approval on funding, it is expected that the new vessels will be delivered for acceptance by the Naval Service during the first quarters of 2012 and 2013 respectively. The Department does not propose to exercise the option available under the terms of the tender competition to purchase a third OPV, although it is intended in due course to examine the opportunities that may be presented by doing so. The exercise of any such option would obviously be subject to a further Government decision.

In the current difficult economic environment, it is important that we look to the efficiencies which all parts of the public sector can make so as to continue to deliver high quality public services within a more constrained financial resource envelope. However, it is also important that we continue to invest in public services so as we can maintain service levels into the future. Within the resources available to us, to maintain capacity, we need to continue the process of modernisation and reinvestment in the Defence Forces generally, into the future. The Naval Service Vessel Replacement Programme is part of this process.

The acquisition of these modern new vessels will ensure that the Naval Service will be fully equipped to carry out its day to day roles in enforcing the State's sovereign rights over our waters and our fisheries and meeting Ireland's obligations in the area of maritime safety and security and fisheries protection.

In relation to the larger EPV, the Department intends to complete the contract negotiations in relation to the OPV before the second stage of the EPV competition is initiated. As with the OPVs, any decision to award a contract for the purchase of an EPV must be approved by the Government.

The strategy combined with a continuous process of refurbishment will ensure that the operational capability of the Naval Service is maintained at a satisfactory level.