Kership, the joint venture between French shipbuilder Piriou and Naval Group, has commenced construction of the first of two new offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) for the armed forces of Montenegro. Construction of the OPV follows a 2024 intergovernmental agreement between the French Ministry of Defence and the Montenegrin Ministry of Defence relating to defence cooperation.
Following the agreement, which was confirmed at the 2024 Euronaval exhibition, Montenegro signed a contract for the acquisition of two OPV 60s from Kership, to be built at the Piriou facility in Concarneau. Acquisition of two modern OPVs will significantly enhance the country’s naval capability. The Montenegrin Navy – which was established in 2006, following the secession of Montenegro from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro – has few vessels and only a little equipment inherited from the armed forces of the State Union, but the country has an extensive coastline.
Based on an existing design that Piriou built for the Senegalese Navy, the OPV 60 was originally designed to undertake surveillance in coastal waters and within the exclusive economic zone. The third and final example of the design was delivered to Senegal in April 2025.
The OPV 60 is a 60m patrol vessel that Kership has updated to enable the Montenegrin Navy to carry out missions including protecting infrastructure, border control, anti-piracy operations, search and rescue, pollution response and humanitarian aid. Addition of the vessels will reinforce Montenegro’s ability to patrol waters at the gateway to the Adriatic, better protect its national interests at the sea and enhance its ability to contribute to NATO’s collective efforts in the region. The new vessels will also enable the Montenegrin Navy to deploy special forces and above-water drones.
With a length overall of 62.95m and a beam of 9.5m, the OPV 60 has a draught of 2.7m. Constructed with a steel hull and aluminium superstructure, it will provide accommodation for 24 crew and up to 16 special forces personnel. The OPV will have a diesel-electric propulsion system with MAN engines, two fixed-pitch propellers, two rudders and a bow thruster. The OPV 60s will have a range of 9,700nm, a maximum speed of 21knots and a displacement of 550tonnes, and each will make use of an active stabilisation system.
Kership said the OPV 60s will also be equipped with a 7.5tonne-capacity crane, and will be capable of embarking two 20’ containers. Special forces personnel will be deployed using a pair of 6.8m rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs), which will be launched and recovered via a stern-mounted ramp. The newbuilds will be armed with a remotely operated 40mm gun and two remotely operated 12.7mm machine guns. They will also embark unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and have diver/special forces facilities.
The design has also been modified to include a hull-mounted sonar and a nuclear, biological and chemical ‘cell’ to protect the crew in the event of an attack. Naval Group will supply a Polaris combat management system for the new OPVs.
Kership says the first vessel, Petar 1, will be delivered to the Montenegrin Navy in the first half of 2027, with the second, Petar II, to be delivered six months after the first.
