In the recently concluded Asian Defense And Security Exhibition or ADAS 2024 that held from September 25 to 28, 2024, various military and defense companies are pitching their recent defense technology and upping their respective offers, hoping to secure a significant chunk of the Philippine defense market, whether it may be the one belonging to the Armed Forces of the Philippines or with other relevant agencies such as the Philippine National Police or the Philippine Coast Guard.
The 2024 Asian Defense And Security (ADAS) exhibition that took place in the World Trade Center convention hall on September 25-27 presented opportunities for the defense industries and companies to present their respective product lines and scale models, while presenting the vision that they have in taking part in the Philippine defense establishment’s enlarged push to improve its overall capabilities in the name of national defense and security.
This topic go separately to the previously crafted entry for a possible HDP-2200 Offshore Patrol Vessel offer for the Philippine Coast Guard, as the booth of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries now presents multiple vessel solutions that the maritime law enforcement agency might need, from small vessels similar in size to the Parola-class Multirole Response Vessels, to gigantic ones that can counter the Chinese monster ships and can stay for months at contested areas like the Escoda Shoal.
HD HYUNDAI HEAVY INDUSTRIES IN ADAS 2024
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| Scale model designs of different vessel options provided by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries for the Philippine Coast Guard during the Asian Defense And Security Exhibition or ADAS 2024. Image from Department of National Defense. |
The 2024 Asian Defense And Security (ADAS) exhibition that took place in the World Trade Center convention hall on September 25-27 presented opportunities for the defense industries and companies to present their respective product lines and scale models, while presenting the vision that they have in taking part in the Philippine defense establishment’s enlarged push to improve its overall capabilities in the name of national defense and security.
Each defense industry that aims to secure the ever-growing Philippine defense market set up their respective booths in the exhibition, notably among companies that are actively taking part in some of the Armed Forces of the Philippines’ modernization-related acquisition projects. Some of the defense firms involved already delivered goods to a certain project of the Philippine Military, now actively taking part in expanding their business in the local defense market.
Among those who took part in the ADAS 2024 Exhibition is the South Korean shipbuilder HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, whereby they fielded various scale model designs of different ships that cater to both the needs of the Philippine Navy and the Philippine Coast Guard.
Their offer to the former is a given, since the South Korean shipbuilder took part in the first Frigate Acquisition Project, the Corvette Acquisition Project, and the Offshore Patrol Vessel Acquisition Project.
The three projects are now what define the Jose Rizal-class Frigates, Miguel Malvar-class frigates (now bearing the FFG designation after getting an initial FF designation during the launch of BRP Miguel Malvar FFG/FF-06), and the HDP-2200+ Offshore Patrol Vessels, totaling at least ten (10) vessels delivered upon completion of all units from the time this writeup has published. This might increase further to twelve (12) units as the second Frigate Acquisition Project is getting likely to be another HD Hyundai preference.
As for their offer to the latter, the Philippine Coast Guard has a promising prospect of expanding its fleet further, especially with its crucial role in deterring against the provocative and intrusive China Coast Guard and Chinese Maritime Militia that illegally entering the 200 nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone in the West Philippine Sea, while challenging the Philippines legal control into areas rightfully part of the country such as the Panatag (Scarborough) Shoal and the Kalayaan Island Group.
The South Korean shipbuilder presented a wider array of shipping solutions that the Philippine Coast Guard might consider, although this might also mean countering the current preference of the maritime law enforcement agency leaning on the Japanese built vessels.
Currently, the Philippine Coast Guard has at least ten (10) 44-meter Parola-class Multirole Response Vessels or MRRVs and two (2) 97-meter Teresa Magbanua-class Multirole Response Vessels, with five (5) more coming on its way to the country.
In this writeup, the only focus is on the different scale model ship designs that HD Hyundai Heavy Industries displayed during the ADAS 2024 Exhibition for the Philippine Coast Guard, as the ones presented for the Philippine Navy will come as an entirely different topic, with its own set of discussion and other details to cover. Ultimately, the premise will provide the size and capability of each model presented, correlating to the plans of the Philippine Coast Guard for its fleet expansion.
THE PRESENTED PRODUCT LINE
In the scale models presented by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in its podium during the 2024 Asian Defense And Security Exhibition, the following ones that sport the Philippine Coast Guard colors will be the one that will delve into in this part of the discussion, with each vessels come with various shapes and sizes, ranging from the smaller vessels weighing 500 tons to the large 4,000 ton vessels.
Each scale model presented has its marketing points for the Philippine Coast Guard might consider for its capability.
1. HDP-500
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| The HDP-500 come as the smallest one offered by the South Korean shipbuilder. (c) Frances Mangosing, X (formerly Twitter). |
The smallest among the designs offered by HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in this exhibition for the Philippine Coast Guard, its size is actually larger than the 44-meter Parola-class Multirole Response Vessels that the maritime law enforcement bought from Japan through a financial line provided through the Official Development Aid Loan. Coming at 55 meters long, the HDP-500 design provides some extra space for the Philippine Coast Guard’s Unmanned Aerial Vehicles or UAV, if it needs one to deploy.
Other information presented for this ship is that it comes with the weight of 570 tons and a maximum speed of twenty-four (24) knots, sufficient for its performance in the high seas particularly if it goes for a tit for tat chase between the white hulls deployed by both China and the Philippines in the West Philippine Sea. Compared to the Parola-class MRRVs, the HDP-500 comes slower by only one (1) knot, although the significant size gain might give added space for additional improvement on the Philippine Coast Guard capabilities for both accommodation and added subcomponents onboard.
Completing the details, the Parola-class Multirole Response Vessels that are currently serving the Philippine Coast Guard also comes as lighter compared to the HD-500 patrol vessel design of the HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in terms of tonnage, as the former comes at around 321 tons or 249 tons lighter than what the South Korean white hull ship design comes in mind. Given a larger size while having a small variance on speed, this vessel might be worth a consideration for the agency’s aims for an expanded fleet.
2. HDP-1500
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| The HDP-1500 Offshore Patrol Vessel originally come as an offer to the Philippine Navy's project for its own Offshore Patrol Vessels. (c) Frances Mangosing, X (formerly Twitter). |
The next on the list is a vessel that is at one point offered to the Philippine Navy’s Offshore Patrol Vessel Acquisition Project, although this gets eventually increased in tonnage and its hull stretched out that is now become a separate design of its own being the HDP-2200+ Offshore Patrol Vessel. Despite the change, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries still keep this design, in which it looks forward to that agencies like the Philippine Coast Guard might consider it for their respective requirements.
Coming at around eighty-one (81) meters long, 1,700 tons, and the speed of around twenty-four (24) knots, the HDP-1500 comes as shorter to the Philippine Coast Guard’s BRP Gabriela Silang (OPV-8301), the eighty-three (83) meter vessel that the maritime law enforcement agency bought from France’s OCEA, and is also currently the largest aluminum-hulled vessel that the agency operates at present. Having an aluminum hull, the BRP Gabriela Silang is likely lighter compared to the steel-based hull of the HDP-1500 ship design, although the speed of the French-made ship varies from 20 to 30 knots.
Additional information for this ship includes having a beam of 13.1 meters and a draught of 3.5 meters, although its endurance and range might go higher than 28 days and 5,500 nautical miles, respectively, given that the specifications provided are for the Philippine Navy’s Offshore Patrol Vessel purposes. The variance has the onboard subcomponents into consideration, especially that the Philippine Coast Guard vessels do not come with weapons that usually come with the Philippine Navy’s own requirements.
3. HDP-2200
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| The HDP-2200 Offshore Patrol Vessel design is actually the likely preferred design for the Philippine Coast Guard's own white hull requirements. (c) Frances Mangosing, X (formerly Twitter). |
This following ship in the list is also the one that might likely be the design that gets offered to the Philippine Coast Guard from the South Korean shipbuilder, citing that it shares similar design commonality and logistical chains with the Offshore Patrol Vessels currently produced for the Philippine Navy’s own requirements. Apparently, the one offered to the Philippine Coast Guard is a slight derivative of the design provided for the Philippine Navy, with the former likely having a helicopter hangar accommodation.
As this go similarly to the Offshore Patrol Vessel design of the Philippine Navy with slight variations, its specifications go with the following information - it has a weight displacement of 2,450 tons, overall length of 94.4 meters, beam of 14.3 meters, draught of 3.7 meters, speed of 22 knots, range of 5,500 nautical miles, and the maximum endurance of 30 knots. This is slightly smaller than the Teresa Magbanua-class Multirole Response Vessels that the Philippine Coast Guard bought from Japan through an Official Development Aid (soft loan) arrangement, although the South Korean design has an expanded range compared to the 4,000 nautical miles that the current flagship have.
Among the scale model designs offered, the HDP-2200 stands as a greater chance for the Philippine Coast Guard to consider, particularly that it may improve commonality, interoperability, and spare parts logistics chain with their counterparts in the Philippine Navy. This means that it encourages subject exchanges and training between the personnel of both the Philippine Navy and Coast Guard, while simplifying the learning curve on the vessel’s operation in the high seas.
4. HDP-3300
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| This scale model has a main gun that large South Korean Coast Guard vessels usually have. (c) Frances Mangosing, X (formerly Twitter). |
The following vessel design presented here has its specifications go beyond the current flagships of the Philippine Coast Guard and goes on par with the Philippine Navy’s Jose Rizal-class frigate in terms of its size, and Miguel Malvar-class frigate in terms of its tonnage. It shares some design attributes with both the HDP-1500 and the HDP-2200 offshore patrol vessel design, with this design getting a full Coast Guard cutter treatment with having a main gun onboard that Chinese and United States CG vessels have.
Having a size of at least 106 meters long, weight displacement of 3,300 tons, and speed of around 24 knots, the HDP-3300 vessel design that HD Hyundai Heavy Industries presented to the Philippine Coast Guard comes a meter short to the Jose Rizal-class frigates’ 107-meter long hull (overall), while being having one hundred (100) tons heavier than the Miguel Malvar-class frigates’ 3,200 tons weight displacement. Compared to the first three (3) designs, it bears more weapons aside from the mentioned main gun.
The size of this ship, along with its armaments, can help the Philippine Coast Guard expand its capabilities and prolonged presence in areas like the West Philippine Sea, although this modification might come without the armaments like a main gun. This comes as the HDP-2200 design for the Philippine Coast Guard lacks the 76mm main gun armament that the Philippine Navy Offshore Patrol Vessels have, clearly signifying the difference on the mandates of both maritime entities of the Philippine government.
5. HDP-5500
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| The HDP-5500 can provide expanded deployment that the Philippine Coast Guard needs in areas like the West Philippine Sea. (c) Frances Mangosing, X (formerly Twitter). |
Completing the list is the largest ship that HD Hyundai Heavy Industries presented in its scale model design, one in which can help the Philippine Coast Guard counter the largest Coast Guard vessel that China has fielded in the West Philippine Sea and the broader South China Sea area in recent times. Its size can also double as the primary ship that the Philippine Coast Guard needs in prolonged deployment in the West Philippine Sea, in a manner it has done with the BRP Teresa Magbanua in Escoda Shoal for months.
The HDP-5500 coast guard vessel design comes with the following specifications - it has the size of around 140 meters long, 5,500 tons, and has a speed of around 25 knots. There is no substantiated information about its crew capacity, its beam and draught, or its range and endurance, but the scale model presented makes this a vessel capable of providing near-permanent presence in the West Philippine Sea, but still less ideal than constructing and installing permanent structures and outposts in areas near or around Kalayaan Island Group and Panatag Shoal.
For comparison, the Chinese Cutter “Nansha”, the monster ship that the Philippine media reports and also calls by its hull number CCG-5907, comes with its displacement of around 12,000 tons, basically more than twice than what HDP-5500 presents for the Philippine Coast Guard. Also, the size of the Chinese monster ship’s hull comes at around 164.89 meters, or at least 24.89 meters longer than the South Korean design. Finally, this vessel’s deployment in the West Philippine Sea might give this vessel design a consideration.
IN SUMMARY
%20-%20PDA.jpg "The HDP-2200 OPV design is seen as the likely candidate HD Hyundai pushes for the Philippine Coast Guard's fleet expansion.") |
| The HD Hyundai Heavy Industries has unveiled the scale model of the HDP-2200 Offshore Patrol Vessel design with the Philippine Coast Guard insignia during the Korea Ocean Expo (KOE) 2024. Image Source. |
The presentation of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries for the Philippine Coast Guard on its booth during the 2024 Asian Defense and Security or ADAS Exhibition highlights its desire to take part with the maritime law enforcement agency’s ongoing modernization push, particularly with the number of white hulls it pursues in the upcoming years. The number of scale model designs presented gives a wide range of options that the Philippine Coast Guard may choose to expand its present capabilities.
From the small HDP-500 vessel design to the largest HDP-5500 design that helps counter the Chinese monster ship mooring in the West Philippine Sea for prolonged deployment, the South Korean shipbuilder provided its ships portfolio as an attempt to enter the Philippine Coast Guard’s own fleet market, in a way that it succeedingly get the significant portion of the Philippine Navy’s own fleet requirements by producing the orders booked for frigates, offshore patrol vessels, and guided missile frigates (corvettes).
One important salient feature that HD Hyundai Heavy Industries market to the Philippine Coast Guard is on interoperability and streamlined spare parts hulk with their counterparts in the Philippine Navy, as this is how they market the HDP-2200 Offshore Patrol Vessel design for the maritime law enforcement agency to consider. Should this option get considered, there will be an effective commonality in skills and maintenance between both entities in getting this type of vessel design.
While this South Korean shipbuilder has promising prospects in selling the ship designs for the Philippine Coast Guard to consider, there are still obstacles for them to achieve or secure a portion of the maritime law enforcement agency’s fleet composition. One highlight is the Philippine Coast Guard’s preference for French and Japanese-made vessels, with the latter comprising the bulk of the agency’s operating white hulls such as the Parola-class and Teresa Magbanua-class Multirole Response Vessels (MRRVs).
The preference also comes that the projects mentioned for the two (2) aforementioned Multirole Response Vessel class made in Japan have purchased through the Official Development Aid loan, making it difficult for HD Hyundai Heavy Industries to market its ships to the Philippine Coast Guard unless if it has the backing of any soft loan or financing facility equivalent from the South Korean government in order for their offers to get enticing for the maritime agency to consider.
It remains to see the extent of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries’ extent into marketing its ship designs for the Philippine Coast Guard for consideration, as the competition is stiff into securing contracts in this agency that is predominantly composed of French and Japanese white hulls, both of which came with soft loans and lessening financial stress in mind. Still, the designs presented by the South Korean shipbuilder provide a promising prospect that its decision makers might consider later on.
Ultimately, all the ships that HD Hyundai Heavy Industries presented in ADAS 2024 do not only presented their likely offers that the Philippine Coast Guard might consider, but also the continuous partnership that they have with the Philippine Navy, in which it has the chance of getting expanded with their offers particularly with the naval service branch of the Philippine military’s plan to buy additional full complement frigates. All designs presented help the Philippines improve its own maritime domain awareness.
(c) 2025 PDA.
