2 weeks ago
India-Germany Rs 70,000-Crore Submarine Deal Nears Key Approval
India wants to build six new submarines for its Navy, and the plan is called Project 75(I).
The project would cost about Rs 70,000 crore, which is a very, very large amount of money.
A company in Mumbai called Mazagon Dock will build the submarines together with a German company called ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems.
These submarines are special because they can stay underwater for a long time using a clever engine called air-independent propulsion.
India has been trying to make this deal work for years, but the talks kept getting stuck over money, technology and other details.
Some other countries that wanted to build the submarines gave up or were not chosen.
The German company is already working with Indian companies to make torpedoes and other underwater equipment.
India needs new submarines because its old ones are getting old and because China is sending more submarines into the Indian Ocean.
A government committee called the Cabinet Committee on Security may approve the plan very soon.
If it does, building can start, and the first new submarine might be ready around 2032 or 2033.
India's roughly Rs 70,000 crore Project 75(I) proposal for six advanced conventional submarines is expected to come before the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) in the coming days, according to media reports.
The submarines would be built primarily by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) in Mumbai in partnership with Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS).
The programme was delayed for years over commercial terms, technical specifications, technology transfer, pricing, intellectual property, workshare and liability, and several bidders withdrew or were eliminated.
TKMS has partnered with Hyderabad's VEM Technologies on heavyweight torpedoes (with ATLAS ELEKTRONIK involved) and Mumbai's CFF Fluid Control on anti-submarine warfare systems.
The AIP-equipped boats are meant to address the Navy's conventional submarine shortfall and ageing fleet as Chinese submarine activity in the Indian Ocean rises; local content is projected to rise from about 45% on the first submarine to around 60% on later boats.
- Who
- India's Cabinet Committee on Security, the Indian Navy, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) and Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS).
- What
- A proposal for six advanced conventional submarines with air-independent propulsion, worth roughly Rs 70,000 crore, expected to be placed before the CCS for approval.
- Where
- India, with the submarines to be built primarily by MDL in Mumbai with German partner TKMS.
- When
- In the coming days, according to media reports; negotiations have run for years, and the first vessel is expected around 2032-33 if a contract is signed.
- Why
- To address the Navy's conventional submarine shortfall and ageing fleet, counter rising Chinese submarine activity in the Indian Ocean, and build domestic submarine-building and technology-transfer capability.
Key facts
- Project
- Project 75(I)
- Estimated Value
- Roughly Rs 70,000 crore
- Scope
- Six advanced conventional submarines with air-independent propulsion (AIP)
- Primary Builder
- Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL), Mumbai
- Foreign Partner
- ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS), Germany
- Local Content Target
- About 45% on the first submarine, rising to around 60% on subsequent boats
- Expected First Vessel
- Around 2032-33, with remaining submarines at roughly annual intervals
- TKMS Indian Partners
- VEM Technologies (torpedoes, with ATLAS ELEKTRONIK); CFF Fluid Control (anti-submarine warfare); exploring cooperation with DRDO
Sources
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