The multi-billion dollar deal for six advanced conventional submarines under project-75I has crossed a major milestone with the bid by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), Mumbai, and Germany’s TKMS (Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems) having cleared the technical evaluation conducted by the Defence Ministry. The bid by Larsen & Toubro in partnership with Navantia of Spain has not cleared the technical evaluation.
The benchmarked price of ₹43,000 crore for the deal was set a decade ago, and given the technological upgrades since and factoring in the inflation and currency fluctuations, the final cost is expected to see a major upward revision.
“MDL confirms that the commercial bid submitted by MDL has been opened by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for further processing,” MDL said on the P-75I bid in a disclosure statement on Thursday as per requirements of the market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India.
The compliance checks of the two bids received were completed in June last year as part of the Field Evaluation Trials (FET) and the reports were since were under scrutiny in the Ministry. The bids were opened last week and the bid by MDL-TKMS was declared technically complaint, according to official sources. “The commercial negotiations will now commence based on the price quoted in the bid submitted,” a source stated.
The Request For Proposal (RFP) issued by the Navy for the programme detailing the specifications states that the first submarine should have indigenous content (IC) of 45% which should up to 60% for the sixth and last submarine. The key determinant, however, to qualify for P-75I is the Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) module, which enhances the endurance and stealth of a submarine. The AIP module became the real determinant for qualifying the technical criteria.
The design offered by TKMS, in partnership with MDL, is based on its highly successful Class 214 submarine as well as Class 212CD and has an operationally proven AIP module. Navantia, which has tied up with L&T, has offered a submarine based on its new S80 class of submarines, the first of which was launched in 2021 and was commissioned into the Spanish Navy as S-81 ‘Isaac Peral’ in November 2023. However, the AIP module on offer by Navantia isn’t fully operational yet, as required in the bid, and Navantia had demonstrated the AIP module fitted in a submarine operating on the surface and not submerged and the submerged performance was to be demonstrated in due course, as reported by The Hindu earlier.
The TKMS has conveyed to the Indian Navy that the Lithium ion cell in its AIP module will be upgraded by the time the first submarine is delivered. The AIP module has a Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) based fuel cell and company officials had stated and that it has both fuel cell as well Lithium Ion based giving it enhanced performance.
As reported by The Hindu earlier, Germany has already presented a Government to Government proposal to India for the P-75I programme and Germany had also accorded a special status to India for approvals towards military purchases.
The submarine deal was on top of the agenda during the visits of the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez to India in the last quarter of last year.
