VESSEL REVIEW | Osum – Large hybrid patrol vessel for Italy’s Guardia di Finanza police force

Italy’s Guardia di Finanza (GdF) financial police has taken delivery of a new offshore patrol vessel (OPV) built by local shipyard Cantiere Navale Vittoria.

Designed by Netherlands-based the Damen Shipyards Group, Osum will serve as the GdF’s newest flagship. The vessel has a displacement of 500 tonnes, a length of 60 metres, and a beam of 10 metres, making it the largest vessel ever to be operated by the same agency. Even at full load, the vessel’s draught is kept low at only 3.15 metres.

Osum is the first of a planned series of patrol vessels that are officially designated as the Bandiera (“Flag”) class. Duties will include maritime policing and monitoring of national and European maritime borders in all weather and sea conditions.

The OPV is powered by a hybrid diesel-electric propulsion system consisting of two MTU 20V4000 M93L engines that each produce 4,300 kW at 2,100 rpm and two Reintjes LAF 1963 HL-HR gearboxes. This arrangement delivers a maximum speed of 26 knots and a range of 2,000 nautical miles (or an endurance of 15 days) at a cruising speed of 18 knots. Damen’s signature wave-piercing bow design is also incorporated to ensure minimal resistance at high operating speeds.

At lower speeds, the diesel-electric system enables low-emission operations at speeds of up to nine knots. This is achieved by twin 270kW reversible PTI electric motors linked to the driveshafts.

The OPV also has space on the aft deck for two nine-metre rigid inflatable boats (RIBs) and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The RIBs and the UAVs will help expand the vessel’s coverage during interception, boarding, and rescue missions, though the vessel already boasts advanced radar and communications equipment.

Accommodations are available for a 30-strong crew. Although it will be manned exclusively by GdF crews, the OPV will regularly sail with embarked personnel from Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, during joint international maritime policing operations.