The OPV ‘Furor’ calls at Libreville during its deployment in the Gulf of Guinea

•  The crew welcomed numerous civilian officials on board and carried out an intensive programme of military cooperation activities with the Gabonese Navy

  The OPV (BAM in Spanish) ‘Furor’ has docked in Libreville (Gabon) as part of the Coordinated Maritime Presence deployment in the waters of the Gulf of Guinea (PMC-GdG).

The port call began with the traditional ‘Voice Greeting’ to the Spanish Ambassador to Gabon, Rafael Chaves Beardo. This event marked the start of the institutional programme at the port of Owendo, which included an official reception attended by numerous Gabonese civil and military authorities, notably the Minister of Defence, the Chief of Defence of the Armed Forces, the Chief of the Naval Staff and the Governor of the Estuary Region, as well as representatives of the accredited diplomatic corps.

On the operational front, the crew took advantage of the port call to carry out a programme of military cooperation activities alongside the Gabonese Navy, aimed at knowledge exchange, joint training and capacity building in the field of maritime security.

Highlights of the activities carried out included those relating to maritime situational awareness, maritime surveillance and security operations, counter-piracy operations, maritime interdiction operations, fire safety and damage control, maritime force protection, manoeuvres at sea, combat medical care and the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

To mark the end of its stay in Libreville, the OPV  ‘Furor’ set sail with the Chief of the Gabonese Navy on board. This final activity was carried out to demonstrate the operational effectiveness of the M5D-AIRFOX UAV system, manufactured by the Spanish company Marine Instruments, which is designed for maritime surveillance and security missions.

This port call in Libreville has helped to strengthen cooperation with Gabon in an area of particular strategic importance, namely the Gulf of Guinea, where challenges relating to maritime security, such as piracy, illicit trafficking and illegal fishing, persist. The presence of the BAM ‘Furor’ contributes to improving regional security, maritime situational awareness and interoperability between navies, in line with the objectives of the PMC-GdG deployment.

The activities carried out during this port call highlight Spain’s commitment to international maritime security, the strengthening of bilateral relations and support for the national industry, consolidating the OPV  ‘Furor’ as a key tool in the projection of Spain’s influence abroad.

European Union Coordinated Maritime Presences (PMC)

This deployment of the OPV ‘Furor’ forms part of the European Union’s Coordinated Maritime Presence (CMP) initiative off the West African coast and in the Gulf of Guinea, aimed at coordinating the naval presence of Member States in areas of strategic interest, thereby contributing to the protection of maritime routes and the support of national interests abroad. Since 2012, Spain, as a partner fully committed to European security and defence, has been one of the main contributors to this European initiative to support maritime security in African waters.