In a statement released on Monday, the group said the BR71 MKII corvettes will be equipped with a three-dimensional radar, secure communications, a main gun and missile systems that can take down targets both in the water and in the air.
The ships will be built by Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADBS), a subsidiary of the EDGE Group, in a shipyard with an area of 330,000 square meters located in the capital of the United Arab Emirates, mentioned in the statement.
ADBS executive chairman David Massey said in the statement that the BR71 MKII corvette is "capable of carrying out various types of missions to protect Angola's 1,600-kilometer coastline".
"We look forward to meeting the operational requirements of the Angolan Navy and strengthening its naval capabilities," added Massey.
The signing of the contract is "an important achievement" for the EDGE Group and meets the ambitions of the Government of the United Arab Emirates, said the conglomerate's director for Platforms and Systems, Khalid Al Breiki.
The statement recalls that the country, whose economy still depends on oil and natural gas exploration, wants to "increase exports" and position itself "as a global power to be reckoned with in the sectors of advanced technology and defense".
In January, the Ministry of Finance announced the signing of two financing agreements worth 122.6 million dollars with the Abu Dhabi Export Credit Agency (ADEX), in the emirate.
The first agreement will finance the project to acquire an Analytical Platform, Main Data Center, Backup Data Center and the National Cloud Platform, in the amount of 89 million dollars.
The second agreement aims to reinforce and maintain public lighting in the cities of Luanda, Malanje, Ndalatando and Uíge, for a total amount of 33.6 million dollars.
The President, João Lourenço, visited Abu Dhabi in May 2022, having met with the new President of the United Arab Emirates, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
In March 2022, the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Esmeralda Mendonça, had promised to work with other countries to combat piracy, also intending to pay for illegal fishing for the Angolan economy.
