Naval patrol boat to be sold at public auction

The naval patrol boat LÉ Aoife is to be decommissioned this month and sold off, through public auction, by the end of February.

Auctioneer Dominic Daly, appointed by the Department of Defence to handle the sale, was yesterday confident the vessel will fetch more interest, and more money, than the LÉ Emer, which had been sold to a Nigerian businessman in October 2013.

The LÉ Emer was disposed of for €320,000 — €80,000 below the asking price.

Its new owner, Cyprian Imobhio, the chief executive and managing director of Uniglobe Group — which is involved in hotels, road construction, and marine services — planned to convert the then 35-year-old LÉ Emer into a “pleasure boat” after outbidding two other interested parties.

Mr Daly was optimistic about the sale potential of the LÉ Aoife, noting the vessel had additional features such as a bow-thruster and desalination equipment.

With two powerful, six-cylinder diesel engines, it underwent a major refit last February and was described by the Naval Service as being “in very good condition”.

Mr Daly said he had “not yet decided on an optimum figure” for the LÉ Aoife, but suggested a new owner could convert it to a luxury vessel.

The LÉ Emer was replaced in the fleet by the €50m LÉ Samuel Beckett, constructed at Appledore shipyard in Devon.

Its sister ship, LÉ James Joyce, being constructed in the same shipyard, will be delivered to the service’s headquarters at Haulbowline, Co Cork, by the end of February.

The LÉ Aoife, built 36 years ago, will have its armaments removed before auction. It may officially be decommissioned in Waterford, its twin city.

The patrol boat was primarily tasked for fisheries protection but also assisted in a number of emergency rescue operations.

Among them was the rescue of Canadian submarine Chicoutimi, which got into trouble off the north-west coast in 2004.

It also assisted in the rescue of over 100 children after winds caused havoc during a sailing regatta in Dun Laoghaire harbour.