NSW: Ceremony to mark completion of refit of Tongan boat

AAP General News (Australia)
08-06-1999
NSW: Ceremony to mark completion of refit of Tongan boat

SYDNEY, Aug 6 AAP - The Defence Department will today hold a ceremony in Port Macquarie to
farewell a Tongan ship refitted in Australia's largest defence cooperation project.

The Tongan Pacific Patrol Boat VOEA Savea is one of 22 Australian-built boats provided to
Pacific Forum countries over the past decade to help them police their economic exclusion
zones and help with emergency search and rescue incidents.

Project director Lieutenant Commander Tony Deacon said the boats were now being refurbished
to keep them in top condition and the Savea was the 13th boat to undergo the half-life refit.

"The half-life refit is particulary important as it ensures the boats are maintained in
peak condition to enable Pacific nations to carry out the important task of protecting their
200 mile exclusive economic zones and their fishing resources," LCDR Deacon said in a
statement.

During the refit, the boats undergo an examination, structural repairs, an equipment
upgrade and an overhaul of the engine and machinery, he said.

Today's ceremony at the Port Macquarie Slipways on the New South Wales mid-north coast
marks the successful completion of the Savea's three-month refit and its return to Tonga.

AAP km/jo/jm

KEYWORD: SAVEA

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