Delays hamper Philippines' follow-on Tarlac-class LPDs

The Philippine Navy's first SSV, BRP Tarlac , seen here arriving in Surabaya for an MRO work in April 2025. Construction work for follow-on vessels to this class has been delayed. (PT PAL)

A programme to equip the Philippine Navy with two more landing platform dock (LPD)-like strategic sealift vessels (SSVs) is behind schedule after Indonesian shipbuilder PT PAL failed to meet four key milestones stipulated in the contract it has inked with Manila.

Contract documents provided to Janes by an industry source confirm that the milestones are the launch and delivery dates for the third and fourth SSVs respectively.

The Philippines signed a follow-on contract for two more SSVs with PT PAL in June 2022. This contract represents a repeat order after PT PAL received a USD92 million contract in June 2014 for similar ships, which have since been commissioned into service with the Philippine Navy as the Tarlac class.

First-of-class BRP Tarlac was commissioned in June 2016 while the second vessel, BRP Davao del Sur , was inducted in May 2017.

These SSVs derive their main form factors from the 122–125 m-long multirole vessels that are in service with the Indonesian Navy, which are in turn based on a design from South Korean company Dae Sun Shipbuilding.

For the follow-on contract, the SSVs will each feature a slightly longer overall length of 124 m when compared with its predecessor ships that are 123 m long.

Keel for the first modified variant of the SSV, which is the third ship in the class overall, was laid down by PT PAL in January 2024 while keel for the second ship under this contract was laid down in May.