Spanish shipbuilder Navantia announced it has been selected by the US defense department for the repair and maintenance of Arleigh Burke-class destroyers (DDGs) and other US Navy ships forward-deployed at the Rota Naval Base.
The shipbuilder said the €822.4 million (approx. $997.5M) contract would run until 2028 and could generate more than 1,000 direct jobs per year.
The contract solidifies the Spanish builder of Aegis-equipped surface combatants as the main maintainer of US Navy ships stationed in Rota, in the province of Cadiz. Navantia has had a role in the upkeep of ships at the US Navy base since 2013.
Navantia noted it has facilities and personnel deployed at the base, where all the activities associated with this new assignment will be centralized. These facilities, in addition to supporting US Navy ships, provide support activities for Spanish Navy ships.
Rota is home to four US destroyers tasked with supporting NATO’s missile defense system in the European theater. The US Navy is currently in the process of replacing older ships with more modern, Flight IIA destroyers. USS Roosevelt (DDG 80) was the first of the new destroyers to arrive in Spain in April last year. All four new destroyers are scheduled to arrive in Spain by 2022, when an additional US Navy helicopter squadron will also call Rota home.
