A new Combat Support Ship for the Royal Netherlands Navy arrives at Damen Naval shipyard after successful sea trials

Combat Support Ship (CSS) Den Helder (A834) arrived in Vlissingen this morning after completing her maiden voyage and sea trials. The new supply ship for the Royal Netherlands Navy departed from the Damen Naval shipyard in Galați, Romania, on 16 November for her Sea Acceptance Tests (SATs) and is now in Vlissingen-Oost for the final outfitting phase of the project. In the coming months, the finishing work will be carried out before the CSS is handed over to the Netherlands Ministry of Defence's Materiel & IT Command (COMMIT) in spring 2025.

“It is wonderful to have CSS Den Helder at the quayside in Vlissingen,” says Damen Naval Managing Director Roland Briene. “Designing and then working with numerous suppliers to construct a large and complex naval ship like the CSS is a process of years, and it is great to now be able to admire the result of all that hard work. This unique ship is the first of a whole series of vessels that we, as national naval shipbuilder and strategic partner of the Netherlands Ministry of Defence, will deliver to the Royal Netherlands Navy in the coming years. Working together with our national suppliers, we are accelerating and intensifying the coming programs for the renewal of our naval fleet. In Vlissingen, we are already rolling out the Maritime Manufacturing Industry Sector Agenda, which is receiving growing political support. We are bringing the core of naval construction back to Vlissingen and Zeeland, giving a major boost to the region.”

Damen Naval CSS Project Director Arjan Risseeuw was on board for the entirety of the sea trials from Galați to Vlissingen. “We carried out a large number of SATs along the way and simulated various emergency scenarios on board to see how the ship reacts. We are very satisfied with how the sea trials went and the cooperation between the different parties on board: our engineers and commissioners, the crew, and COMMIT. It is a great ship that will strengthen the support and supply of our fleet and our NATO partners.”

COMMIT Project Manager CSS captain (RNLN) Joost Meesters expressed his confidence that the Royal Netherlands Navy will gain a “beautiful and robust ship.” “We found no major problems during the sea trials, and the propulsion, in particular, is performing well,” he said. “CSS Den Helder is the second tanker besides HNLMS Karel Doorman, and we need it for the Royal Netherlands Navy's permanent supply capacity. The idea was to add a robust tanker to the fleet, and I am confident that after finishing the remaining works, we will have achieved that goal in the foreseeable future.”

The sea trials are an important part of a ship's construction and pre-eminently meant to test the whole vessel, says CSS commander Stefjan Veenstra. “It was imperative that we left Romania with a robust ship. Considering the area through which we sailed, we did not have the option of going back in case of problems. The ship had to be good enough to do the whole return trip, and we succeeded in that.”

CSS Den Helder is the replacement for the supply ship HNLMS Amsterdam, which was decommissioned in 2014. The state-of-the-art supply ship can provide naval vessels with fuel, ammunition, water, food, and spare parts. The CSS is deployable worldwide and can operate under high threat, protected by frigates. It can also be used to provide emergency assistance and transport goods. The ship will soon be equipped with a Role-2 medical facility and can carry a helicopter. The nearly 180-metre-long ship will have a 75-strong crew and can take another 75 people on board.

Den Helder has about as much cargo capacity as big half-sister HNLMS Karel Doorman. On board, there is room for 7,600 m³ of diesel (F76), including self-use, 1,000 m³ of helicopter fuel (F44) including self-use, 226 m³ of drinking water, 290 m³ of urea, 434 tonnes of other goods, including ammunition and 24 containers. In addition, the vessel has two 40-tonne cranes. Even in bad weather, the new tanker should be able to support a task force of six ships.

In December 2020, the first steel was cut to build the ship in Galați, Romania, followed by the keel laying in June 2021. The ship was built in several modules, and a large part of the hull was launched on 11 April 2022. The hull was then towed to the dry dock, where it was assembled with the other modules. In May 2023, the ship left the dock and arrived at the quay in Galați for further work and commissioning. Exactly 48 months after the first steel was cut, the ship is now at the quay in Vlissingen for final works. In 2025, the ship will be christened and handed over to COMMIT for the installation of the combat systems. Commissioning is scheduled for the second half of 2025, after which the CSS will be handed over to the Royal Netherlands Navy Command (CZSK) in 2026.