French Navy Ship Arrives In Auckland for Refit

The French Navy’s Light Transport Ship Jacques Cartier arrived in Auckland on Friday 29 August in preparation for a refit program to be carried out by VT Fitzroy Ltd at Devonport Dockyard, Auckland.

The Jacques Cartier is 80 metre overall length and 1,330 tonnes displacement and was built in 1983. The vessel is one of three French Navy vessels based in New Caledonia and is equipped with bow opening doors in order to load and unload from a harbour or beach.

The Jacques Cartier will spend approximately 12 weeks in Auckland for a major refit. This mid-life refit project will involve dry-docking at the Devonport Dockyard’s Calliope Dry-dock and will require approximately 25,000 hrs of repair man hours by VT Fitzroy and associated local subcontractors.

The main repair items include overhaul of the full propulsion train including main engines, gear box and shaft lines, overhaul of auxiliary generators, overhaul of ship refrigeration and air conditioning services as well as freshwater, sea water and sewage systems. Overhauls will be carried out on deck equipment, including cranes, winches and capstans. Preservation of external hull and decks, as well as cargo ramps, bow access doors and tank spaces will be carried out as well as miscellaneous steel work, survey and outfitting repairs.

VT Fitzroy have been working with DCNS a major French Defence Contractor for several months to secure this project and are very pleased to have won this contract against international competition. This work is a natural progression for VT Fitzroy as it allows the Dockyards skilled work force to apply the quality systems developed for its services provided to the Royal New Zealand Navy combined with the commercial experience dry-docking and refitting vessels for New Zealand and Overseas Commercial Ship Owners.

From VTF records, this is the first time that a Foreign Navy vessel has been commercially refitted at Devonport Dockyard.