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New Bulgarian Patrol Ship Brave Heralds Naval Modernization and Stronger Black Sea Defense.
Bulgaria has commissioned the modular patrol ship Hrabri, or Brave, at Varna Naval Base, the first entirely new domestically built warship to join its navy in roughly a century. The 90-meter, 2,300-ton MMPV 90 class vessel adds modern air, surface and subsurface punch to NATO’s Black Sea posture at a time of frequent mine and drone incidents linked to the war in Ukraine.
On December 8, 2025, Bulgaria’s navy quietly turned a page in its history in Varna. At the Naval Base, the national and naval flags were raised over the new modular patrol ship Hrabri (“Brave”), the first warship built by Bulgarian industry for the fleet in more than a century, as reported by the Ministry of Defence and the Bulgarian News Agency BTA. The ceremony, attended by Defence Minister Atanas Zapryanov, Chief of Defence Admiral Emil Eftimov and senior commanders, formally brought the 90-metre vessel into service after successful trials in the Black Sea. In a region reshaped by the war in Ukraine and increasing mine and drone incidents, the arrival of Brave marks a substantial reinforcement of Bulgaria’s ability to monitor and control its maritime approaches.
Beyond symbolizing a new hull under the Bulgarian flag, Brave marks a broader shift: the revival of national shipbuilding, the move from Soviet-era to NATO systems, and Bulgaria’s recognition of the Black Sea as a frontline for modern threats (Picture Source: Bulgarian MoD)
By raising the flag on Hrabri, whose name translates as Brave, Sofia has closed a century-long gap in indigenous warship construction. The last time the Bulgarian Navy received a brand-new ship, it was built in France; this time the hull, integration and fitting-out have been carried out at the MTG Delfin shipyard in Varna, under a 2020 contract with Germany’s NVL Group for two Multifunctional Modular Patrol Vessels (MMPV 90). The platform draws on NVL’s OPV-90 lineage, related to offshore patrol vessels already in service with other navies, but has been tailored to Bulgarian requirements and assembled with extensive participation from local suppliers. Defence Minister Zapryanov stressed that the project demonstrates Bulgaria’s capacity to build this class of combatant at home and noted that allied countries have already expressed interest in the design, while the second ship in the series, Smeli (“Bold”), is expected to follow into service in 2026.
Brave is closer to a light frigate than to a traditional offshore patrol vessel. The steel monohull measures around 90 metres in length with a beam of about 13.5 metres and a full-load displacement in the 2,300-tonne range. A twin-shaft combined-diesel propulsion system gives a top speed of roughly 24 knots and an endurance of about 3,000 nautical miles at cruising speed, allowing the ship to patrol Bulgaria’s entire exclusive economic zone and deploy to NATO or EU operations in the Mediterranean without immediate tanker support. The design offers autonomy of approximately seven days for a core crew of around 70 sailors and incorporates a flight deck and hangar sized for an AS565MB Panther helicopter or unmanned aerial vehicles, two rigid-hulled inflatable boats amidships and modular mission spaces that can be configured for tasks such as anti-submarine warfare, maritime interdiction or search-and-rescue.
The combat system is built around Saab’s 9LV combat management system, which fuses data from the Sea Giraffe AMB multifunction radar, CEROS 200 fire-control radar, electro-optical sensors, hull-mounted sonar and electronic support measures into a single tactical picture. For offensive and defensive firepower, Brave combines an OTO Melara 76 mm Super Rapid main gun with a Rheinmetall Oerlikon Millennium 35 mm close-in weapon system, vertical launch cells for MBDA VL MICA surface-to-air missiles and twin launchers for RBS15 Mk3 anti-ship missiles, complemented by triple 324 mm torpedo tubes able to fire A244/S lightweight torpedoes. Together with decoy launchers and NATO-standard communications, including Link 11 connectivity and provision for future Link 16 and Link 22 integration, this configuration gives the Bulgarian Navy for the first time a surface combatant able to engage air, surface and subsurface threats within an integrated allied air-maritime picture.
Operationally, Brave enters service at a time when the Black Sea has become a testing ground for new types of threats, from drifting mines to explosive uncrewed surface craft. Bulgarian naval forces have already had to neutralise drifting mines and maritime drones in national waters since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and the Navy’s leadership has publicly stated that at least six ships of this class would be needed to cover all standing tasks in national and allied frameworks. Against this backdrop, the 2026 draft budget sets defence expenditure at about 2.7 billion euros, corresponding to roughly 2.25% of GDP and keeping Bulgaria above NATO’s 2% benchmark.
Zapryanov has underlined that within this framework Sofia intends to keep key programmes such as the MMPV 90, F-16 Block 70 fighter deliveries and future mine-hunter acquisitions on track, even if some nationally funded projects are rescheduled or rephased. In parallel, Sofia is negotiating with Belgium and the Netherlands for seven second-hand minehunters and has secured agreement in principle at EU level for certain defence modernisation outlays to be excluded from inflation calculations, signalling that military investment is being treated as a long-term structural priority.
Beyond the symbolism of a new hull under the Bulgarian flag, Brave crystallises a broader shift: the revival of national shipbuilding capacity, the gradual replacement of Soviet-era platforms by NATO-standard systems, and the recognition that the Black Sea is now a frontline for both conventional and hybrid threats. If the second ship Smeli joins the fleet on schedule and the promised budget lines survive domestic political turbulence, the pair of MMPV 90s will give Sofia a credible multi-role naval core able to escort convoys, guard critical seabed and energy infrastructure and integrate smoothly into allied task groups. For a country preparing to enter the euro area while facing sustained pressure on its eastern maritime flank, keeping modernisation projects like Brave on course is not just about renewing hardware; it is a strategic signal that Bulgaria intends to remain a relevant security actor in the Black Sea for decades to come.
Written by Teoman S. Nicanci – Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Teoman S. Nicanci holds degrees in Political Science, Comparative and International Politics, and International Relations and Diplomacy from leading Belgian universities, with research focused on Russian strategic behavior, defense technology, and modern warfare. He is a defense analyst at Army Recognition, specializing in the global defense industry, military armament, and emerging defense technologies.