Brazilian navy to acquire two British Albion-class ships

The HMS Bulwark sailing. (UK Royal Navy)

WASHINGTON — At the LAAD 2025 defense expo in Rio de Janeiro, the navies of Brazil and the United Kingdom signed a letter of intent for the transfer of the British fleet’s two decommissioned Albion-class amphibious command ships: HMS Albion (L14) and HMS Bulwark (L15).

The Brazilian navy, the Marinha do Brasil (MB), justified the potential acquisition by focusing on the ships’ capabilities for humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions.

“We have seen the need for Navy ships to support the population during the various calamities that have occurred due to climate catastrophes, such as the floods that occurred in São Sebastião (Sao Paulo) in 2023, and in Rio Grande do Sul in 2024,” said Adm. Edgar Luiz Siqueira Barbosa.

During the floods in Rio Grande do Sul  in early 2024, the MB deployed various surface platforms, including helo carrier Atlantico, frigate Defensora, and patrol and support vessels Amazonas, Babitonga, and Mearim.

The Albion ships have a length of 176 meters (577 feet), a speed of 18 knots, and a range of up to 8,000 nautical miles. They were designed for the rapid deployment of craft, including Landing Craft Utility (LCU), and have roll-on-roll-off capabilities for land platforms.

The MB’s press statement last week about the British ships also mentioned power projection as a reason for the acquisition. The region hasn’t had an inter-state war in three decades, some occasional tensions and border disputes notwithstanding. Nevertheless, the ships will support the Navy’s patrol of Brazil’s extensive territorial waters and exclusive economic zone.

The Brazilian Navy has the most capable fleet in the region, as it operates Latin America’s only aircraft carrier, the Atlantico.

Brazil’s defense industrial base is also currently unmatched by its regional peers, as exemplified by the domestic construction of four Scorpene-class conventional submarines. Two subs, Riachuelo and Humaita, are already operational, while two others, Tonelero and Almirante Karam, are in the final stages of testing and development. Brazil’s other major domestic shipbuilding projects are the Tamandare-class frigates, the Macae-class patrol boats and a nuclear-powered submarine.

Andrea Resende, professor of International Relations at UNIBH and at the UNA University in Brazil, said she believes three factors weighed in on the MB’s decision to select the Albion ships: the lower price of decommissioned vessels as compared to building them, the operational life of the ships and the MB’s capability to use British-made vessels.

“Both vessels are in good condition as they were only recently decommissioned. Hence, they are still fit to serve the Brazilian Navy,” explained Resende, who researches the MB and international maritime security.

If the two Albion ships are transferred to the Brazilian Navy, the move will reinforce bilateral defense relations and would be the second high-profile defense acquisition by Brasilia in recent years as the Brazilian Navy’s carrier Atlantico previously flew the British flag, then called HMS Ocean.

“The Royal Navy has also received hundreds of Brazilian Navy officers and scholars in its institutions,” Resende added, signaling that relations between the two navies are steel-deep.