Private sector conglomerate Larsen and Toubro (L&T) and Spain's defence major Navantia on Monday inked a 'teaming agreement' here to jointly bid for Indian Navy's prestigious P75 (I)submarine programme. The proposed project is worth over Rs 50,000 crores.
The Defence Ministry is in the process of procuring six domestically built conventional submarines for the Indian Navy as part of the Strategic Partnership programme. The construction of the submarines will take place in India and is expected to have significant local content. Last month, German defence major Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) and state-run Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) inked a framework agreement to bid for the mega project. "Larsen & Toubro and Navantia, Spain signed a Teaming Agreement (TA) today for the purpose of submission of a techno-commercial bid for the Indian Navy's prestigious P75 (India) submarine programme," the L&T said in a statement. The pact was signed at a ceremony in Delhi in the presence of S N Subrahmanyan, L&T CEO and MD, Augustin Alvarez Blanco, Naval Construction Vice President and Member of the Board of Navantia, and Spanish envoy Jose María Ridao Domínguez. The submarines will be built under the much-talked-about strategic partnership (SP) model that allows domestic defence manufacturers to join hands with leading foreign defence majors to produce high-end military platforms to reduce import dependence. The bidding process for the project called P-75 India ends in August. The defence ministry is likely to finalise the winner of the contract by the end of this year or early next year, officials said.
According to the agreement, Navantia would carry out the design of 75(I) submarines based on its S80 class of submarines, the first of which was launched in 2021 and is undergoing sea trials prior to its delivery to Spanish Navy at the end of 2023. Apart from S80 class, Navantia has been involved in the design and construction of Scorpéne class of submarines together with DCNS (Now Naval Group) of France, which have been exported to Chile and Malaysia.
Navantia has also been involved in the Scorpene submarines (Kalvari class) built in India including handholding of the Indian yard. Speaking on the occasion, S N Subrahmanyan said his company is proud to collaborate with Navantia for this prestigious programme of strategic importance for the nation's security."Navantia's glorious 300-year-old track record in naval construction and technical expertise gives us a competitive advantage in this programme and offer the Bio-Ethanol Stealth Technology (BEST) and environmentally Green AIP solution," he said.
"We are committed to providing the most contemporary solution for Indian Navy's requirements at a competitive price," the L&T CEO said. Alvarez Blanco said: “It gives us great joy to be in a position to be the design and technology partner for P75(I). We are also in collaboration with L&T for the Landing Platform Dock (LPD) programme whose tender is eagerly awaited."
"With these two prestigious programmes for the Indian Navy, Navantia is proud to be making a key contribution towards fulfilling the defence needs of India, a nation with which Spain shares an excellent relationship," he added. Meanwhile, a US navy ship USNS Salvor, a Safeguard-class rescue and salvage ship arrived at Kattupalli ship building yard near Chennai for repairs under the Master Ship Repair Agreement (MSRA) between India and the US, a senior official of Larsen and Toubro (L&T) said on Monday. The five-year agreement will see the India's leading private defence company repair the US vessels, said Arun Ramachandran, executive vice-president and head, L&T.
The Military Sealift Command's rescue and salvage ship USNS Salvor (T-ARS 52) arrived at L&T Kattupalli shipyard, for voyage repairs on July 9. It is the third US Navy ship visiting the L&T shipyard for voyage repairs, after USNS Charles Drew and USNS Matthew Perry. The USNS Salvor was welcomed with a ceremony at the shipyard on Monday, and it is the first ship to arrive after the signing of the Master Shipyard Repair Agreement(MSRA). US Consul General in Chennai Judith Ravin, US Embassy New Delhi's Office of Defence Cooperation chief Captain Michael L Farmer, senior US Embassy officials, and L&T leadership participated.
"This Master Shipyard Repair Agreement is yet another milestone in our ever-expanding U.S.-India partnership. This historic agreement is a direct outcome of 2022 US- India 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue and demonstrates US' commitment to utilise repair facilities on a regular basis at the L&T shipyard in Kattupalli," Ravin said.This agreement will serve to strengthen two nations' strategic partnership and contribute to a free and open Indo-Pacific, she said.
