Saab awarded contract for civil marine traffic services system in Hong Kong

Defence and security company Saab has been awarded the contract to completely renew the existing Hong Kong Vessel Traffic Services System by the Government of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The order value is MSEK 360 (HKD 400 million).

The Vessel Traffic Services System enables operators of the Hong Kong Marine Department to monitor the complex shipping in real-time and to provide vessel traffic services within the Hong Kong waters.

The busy Hong Kong waters present a challenging environment with a complicated shipping mix. Super large container vessels interact with other types of vessels, whilst navigating through limited water space, within the major fairways. These vessels have to interact with dense local traffic such as high speed ferries and fishing vessels. To enhance the navigational safety, the traffic must be tracked and monitored in real-time within Hong Kong territorial waters, with hundreds of islands scattered throughout the area adding to the challenge of providing a clear operational overview.

This contract is another important milestone in Saab's presence in the Asia Pacific region and Saabs civil traffic management business, and will be delivered during 2015 and 2016. This project follows in a long line of similar projects around the world over the past 20 years, including the existing system of Hong Kong Marine Department that Saab's subsidiary HITT Traffic supplied in 2002. Other notable projects include systems for the ports of Rotterdam, Taizhou, and Wenzhou and large scale civil surveillance systems covering the coast of India and rivers in China.