The vessel was sold to the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence in January 2023 for £70 million, with plans to refit it to become a ship of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson had first discussed the possibility of such a vessel in November 2020. The MROS was initially announced by the Defence Secretary Ben Wallace during the 2022 Conservative Party conference. Initial conversion for naval service is being conducted at the Cammell Laird shipyard in Birkenhead, UK. The ship was assigned the pennant number K60. Owing to the UK's government's growing concern about protecting subsea infrastructure, and the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Topaz Tangaroa was purchased by the UK's Ministry of Defence in February 2023 to be converted into a multi-role ocean surveillance (MROS) ship operated by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Proteus in dry-dock at Cammell Laird, Birkenhead in 2023, with its previous name Topaz Tangaroa Projects for which the Topaz Tangaroa was deployed includes supporting the construction of the Greater Changhua offshore wind farm near Taiwan. The ship was flagged in the Marshall Islands with its home port as Majuro. Designed and built by Vard Brattvaag, Norway and with the hull construction completed in Tulcea shipyard, Romania the primary capabilities of the Topaz Tangaroa were to support subsea construction and installation projects, subsea inspection and survey, and as a mother ship to support remotely operated vehicle (ROV) operations. The ship operated as the offshore support vessel MV Topaz Tangaroa for Topaz Marine (later, P&O Maritime Logistics) from December 2019 until January 2023. Proteus is one of two new commercial vessels acquired for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary in 2023, the other being RFA Stirling Castle a mine hunting support ship to act as a mothership for autonomous minehunters. The vessel is in a shipyard being refitted as of May 2023, after being sold to the U.K. ![]() The ship was formerly named MV Topaz Tangaroa in 2017–2022, and was used as a platform supply vessel operated by P&O Maritime Logistics. ![]() Acquired in 2023, the ship entered drydock at Cammell Laird for modification into a Multi-Role Ocean Surveillance Ship (MROSS). RFA Proteus is a ship of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary within His Majesty's Naval Service of the United Kingdom. 1 × bow thruster (1 × 1,500 kW, 2,000 hp) Ĩ2 as civil supply vessel 24 RFA and 60 RN personnel in RFA service.2 × Kongsberg azimuth thrusters (2 × 1,650kW).Sold to Ministry of Defence, 14 February 2023 Vard Brattvaag, Norway and Tulcea shipyard in Romania.
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