VESSEL REVIEW | HTMS Suriya – Royal Thai Navy buoy tender with hydrographic survey capability
The Royal Thai Navy took delivery of HTMS Suriya, a new buoy tender and hydrographic vessel built by Asimar, in Samut Prakan, Thailand, on March 30, 2026. The ship replaces an older vessel of the same name and will maintain aids to navigation in Thai waters.
Suriya has been assigned to the Maritime Marker Task Force under the navy’s Hydrographic Department. Her duties include maintaining aids to navigation such as lighthouses, beacons and buoys located along Thailand’s coasts, around islands and in hazardous waters.
Suriya carries a small tender and a Melcal heavy-duty crane for loading and unloading buoys.
The Royal Thai Navy has described inspection and repair of aids to navigation as Suriya’s primary duty, though the ship can also support assistance to people in maritime emergencies and deliver supplies to navy units along the coast or at sea. Those assignments were included in the procurement plan for the vessel replacing the older Suriya.
Built to international hydrographic survey standards
The ship is able to support surveys to the International Hydrographic Organisation’s (IHO) "Special Order" (SO) standard. Under IHO S-44, SO work is intended for areas where under-keel clearance is critical and requires that bathymetric coverage reach 100 per cent, along with a feature search covering 100 per cent.
The project specification also called for an integrated bridge system. Electronic navigation equipment was to be connected through an ethernet network in compliance with IMO standards.
Classed by the American Bureau of Shipping (ABS), Suriya has an overall length of 60 metres (200 feet), a maximum beam of 13.3 metres (43.6 feet), a maximum draught of 3.05 metres (10 feet), a moulded depth of five metres (16 feet), and a maximum displacement of 1,545 tonnes.
Proposed as an economical alternative to vessels built overseas
The vessel can achieve a top speed of 13.1 knots and a cruising speed of 10 knots. The range is 2,400 nautical miles. Operations are possible even under Sea State five conditions.
The vessel has a fuel oil capacity of 65 cubic metres (17,000 gallons), a freshwater capacity of 102 cubic metres (26,900 gallons), and a ballast capacity of 149.8 cubic metres (39,570 gallons). The vessel has a crew complement of 50, though up to 67 people including both crew and service personnel can be accommodated.
Asimar said in its post-delivery statement that Suriya was designed in line with SOLAS, and developed to Habitability Plus criteria. ABS listed the ship as classed with ✠A1, Coast Guard Buoy Tender, Ⓔ, ✠AMS and ✠ACCU notations.
