Indian Navy’s Fledging Nautical Might: DAC Approves $5.6 Billion Contract For Six Diesel-Electric Submarines

Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), chaired by Raksha Mantri Nirmala Sitharaman has approved the procurement of six diesel-electric submarines costing $5.6 billion under Project-75I, reports Defence News.

Some of the contenders for the project are Naval Group, Kockums (Sweden), Rubin Design Bureau (Russia), and Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (Germany). A request for information (RFI) for P-75I was issued in July 2017.

“This is the second project under the MoD’s ambitious Strategic Partnership (SP) model that… envisages indigenous manufacturing of major defence platforms by an Indian SP who will collaborate with a foreign OEM [original equipment manufacturer] to set up production facilities in the country,” said a statement by the Ministry of Defence.

“Today’s DAC [Defence Acquisition Council] approval would be the second such (SP model) project following indigenous production of 111 naval utility helicopters that was approved in August 2018,” the ministry added.

Project-75

Under the earlier Project-75, Indian Navy will acquire six Scorpene-class stealth submarines for $4.16 billion. The French shipbuilder Naval Group - formerly known as Direction des Constructions Navales Services - is building the submarines in partnership with Mumbai-based Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL). As of 31 January, three of the planned six have already been delivered to the Indian Navy.

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