On April 24, Brazilian Inace Shipyard held a keel laying ceremony marking the initiation of the construction of the Hydro-Oceanographic ship (NHoFlu) “Rio Branco” (White River). The vessel will be built by Shipbuilding Ceará (Inace) and it is the first ship fully designed by the Ship Design Center of the Brazilian Navy.

The construction of the vessel is envisaged in the Cartography Project of the Amazon, in partnership with the Brazilian Army, the Brazilian Air Force and the Geological Survey of Brazil.

The ship was designed to carry out hydro-oceanographic survey, collecting environmental data, continual updating of nautical charts and publications, and can act in support of government agencies in the Civil Defense, relief efforts and civic-social actions.

Expected to be ready in about 18 months, the vessel construction contract was signed by the Navy of Brazil and Inace Shipyard on 5th of December last year. Once built, the ship remains in Manaus, State of Amazonas.

The NHoFlu “Rio Branco” will have a total length of 55 meters, the maximum shaped mouth of nine meters, the maximum draft of two meters and a displacement of 530 tons.

Designed to operate in a radius of 3,000 nautical miles, with an autonomy of 25 days, the future ship will integrate modern scientific sensors to fulfill its missions. The ship’s crew will consist of 36 military officers.

Press Release, April 26, 2013