Seeking to acquire half a dozen new AIP submarines as part of the Project 75I program, the Indian Navy has reported that it has selected the proposal from German manufacturer TKMS, in partnership with local shipyard Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL), based on the Type 214 model. This potential contract also saw participation from the Spanish company Navantia, which partnered with the Indian conglomerate Larsen & Toubro but failed to meet the final technical evaluation criteria.
In this regard, an official statement issued last week by MDL stated: “MDL confirms that the commercial bid submitted by MDL has been opened by the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for further processing,” in compliance with the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Board of India following the decision. While the final contract amount may need to be updated to account for inflation and the integration of new technologies, the agreement is expected to exceed 430 billion rupees. The selection of a candidate has been nearly a decade in the making.
It is worth noting that the two finalist proposals were fully presented in June last year and have since undergone a detailed evaluation by the Indian Ministry of Defence as part of the Field Evaluation Trials (FET) phase. This process culminated in the selection of the German Type 214 over Navantia’s Spanish S-80 model. According to reports from India, the decision was primarily driven by the fact that TKMS’s AIP system has already undergone operational testing both on the surface and underwater—something Navantia’s design was unable to demonstrate to the evaluation committee, failing to meet the established requirements.
Additionally, regarding the advantages of the chosen German proposal, TKMS assured the Indian Navy that it is close to implementing a major upgrade package for the lithium-ion cells in its AIP module, which would enhance performance. The company expects to deliver this upgrade after the first submarine of the ordered fleet. Furthermore, the German government has facilitated the deal by granting India a special status for acquiring military equipment, already presenting its government-to-government proposal for Project 75I procurement.
Finally, the Indian Navy’s future replacement for the currently active Type 209 submarines is expected to include a significant percentage of locally sourced components, aiming to support the country’s military-industrial complex. Specifically, the established criteria require that the first delivered submarines feature at least 45% indigenous components, with the final unit in the series increasing this percentage to 60%. The German proposal comfortably meets this requirement, as TKMS will oversee engineering, design, and project consultancy, while MDL will handle the construction and subsequent delivery of the submarines.
Images used for illustrative purposes.
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