The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has agreed to sell the Royal Navy’s amphibious assault ship HMS Ocean to the Government of Brazil for approximately £84m.
The vessel is slated to be decommissioned in March after 20 years of service.
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It will then be handed over to the Brazilian Navy in June.
Babcock and BAE Systems will be responsible for carrying out the Brazilian-funded upgrade and overhaul works on the vessel before its delivery to the country.
Profits generated from the sale are expected to be reinvested in order to upgrade the British Royal Navy’s defence capabilities.
The sale of vessel was managed by the Defence Equipment Sales Authority (DESA), which forms part of the UK MoD’s procurement organisation, known as Defence Equipment and Support.
DESA head Clive Walker said: “We have a proven track record of supplying surplus defence equipment on a government-to-government basis.
“The successful sale of HMS Ocean to the Brazilian Navy will provide a financial return to the UK, which will now be reinvested in defence.”
HMS Ocean has travelled more than 450,000 nautical miles (nmi) since 1998.
The vessel demonstrated its humanitarian and disaster relief capabilities during the hurricane relief effort conducted during Operation Ruman in the Caribbean last year.
The decision to decommission the vessel was confirmed in the Strategic Defence and Security Review (SDSR) 2015.
