February 23, 2014: Two years after Nigeria ordered two Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) from China the first one was recently launched. The second one will be launched before June. Each of these 1,800 ton ships is 95 meters (295 feet) long and has a top speed of 37 kilometers an hour. The crew of 70 is armed with a 76mm gun, two 30mm autocannon, and small arms (assault rifles, light machine-guns, and shotguns). There is a helicopter landing pad at the rear of the ship. These OPVs can remain at sea for up to 20 days. Each ship will cost $21 million. The second ship will have half the construction work done in Nigeria, which is also buying twelve smaller (24 meter and smaller) coastal patrol boats. Nigeria has a growing problem with piracy and smuggling off its coast and the navy needs new ships to deal with it.  China was selected to provide these ships because the price was low and delivery times were short. Nigeria needs new patrol ships to deal with the growing piracy problem off its coast.