Here’s NUSHIP Pilbara, Navy’s Latest OPV
Freo Today. 30 October 2025. Not long ago, on June 2025, we attended the commissioning of HMAS Arafura at Fremantle Harbour. A wonderful event. Here’s another Arafura class OPV – Offshore Patrol Vessel, NUSHIP Pilbara, which has just slipped onto the water near Civmec Limited’s facility at Henderson, just south of Freo, ahead of her scheduled launch tomorrow 31 October 2025. And on the spot to snap her was our super shipspotter Tim Slater.
Do you know about all the OPV building Civmec is currently engaged in at Henderson? Well, following the acquisition of Luerssen Australia Pty Ltd by Civmec on 1 July 2025, the entity has been renamed Civmec Defence Industries Pty Ltd, effective 1 October 2025. As Civmec says on its website, this enables a ‘strategic alignment with Civmec’s broader naval shipbuilding and other capabilities’.
Civmec has already announced the acceptance of NUSHIP Eyre, the second Arafura Class OPV, by the Commonwealth of Australia. In a ceremony held on Friday, 12 September, the parties celebrated the contributions of the South Australian workforce and suppliers who laid the foundation for the SEA 1180 project by constructing the first two OPVs at the Osborne Naval Shipyard near Adelaide.
Shipbuilding for the Arafura Class OPVs has now transitioned exclusively to Civmec’s facility in Henderson, where the remaining four vessels are under construction. Following the commissioning of HMAS Arafura in June, the delivery of NUSHIP Eyre marks ongoing progress for the SEA 1180 project. And the launch ceremony for NUSHIP Pilbara – pictured here – is scheduled for tomorrow, while NUSHIP Gippsland NUSHIP Illawarra and NUSHIP Carpentaria are currently under construction at the Henderson assembly hall.
FYI, the Arafura Class OPVs are the largest steel naval ships ever built in Western Australia. They will deliver modern maritime capabilities to the Royal Australian Navy. With each weighing 1,625-tonne, these 80-metre vessels will contribute to maritime security, regional engagement, and humanitarian and disaster relief operations.