24 April 2015

Editorial: Japan Wins New Philippine Defense Deal

By Prashanth Parameswaran

Tokyo will construct ten vessels for Manila in the coming years.

Japan has won a deal to construct ten vessels for the Philippine Coast Guard in the coming years, news outlets reported earlier this week.

According to an announcement from the Philippine Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) on April 20, the Maritime Safety Capability Improvement Project to supply ten multirole response vessels (MRRVs) was awarded to the Japan Marine United Corp (JMU).

The winning bid, which amounted to PHP8.8 billion (around $200 million), will reportedly comprise of PHP7.4 billion from Japanese Official Development Assistance (ODA) tied to the Japan International Cooperation Agency, and PHP1.4 billion from the Philippine government. It includes the supply of standard spare parts and tools, crew training, ocean transportation, and marine insurance. Delivered are expected to start in 2016 and continue up to 2018.

Read the full story at The Diplomat