The Spanish navy’s replenishment ship is now docked in Halifax Harbour to be used by the Royal Canadian Navy later this month.
“We will be doing exactly the same things we would be doing in Europe but in a more challenging environment on the other side of the Atlantic,” said Gonzalo Rodriguez, a commanding officer for the Spanish navy.
SPS Patiño is going to be used to resupply ships in the North Atlantic in February and March.
Crews from both countries will staff the ship.
“When you look at the world today, we need to be able to interoperate within NATO and this is just a great opportunity for us,” said Commodore Craig Baines, commander of the Canadian Fleet Atlantic.
Rear Admiral John Newton, commander of the Maritime Forces Atlantic, said the only added costs to Canada would be to fuel the ship.
The partnership is needed because there aren’t enough replenishment ships that can still be used. HMCS Preserver is going to be used as a gas station of sorts for SPS Patiño.
“What we’re not going to lose is the competency to be a skilled navy in this kind of business, we just lose the national ability to do it alone,” said Newton. “It’s not disconcerting, it’s so enabling and powerful that we have these relationships where other navies look at it and go, ‘Yeah, there’s something in that for us, as much as there’s something in it for you.'”
According to the Department of National Defence, the first Join Support Ship should be ready by 2020.
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