Think Tank:Sea, air, land and space updates (6-Dec-2016)

Christopher Cowan, Thulasi Wigneswaran, Elisabeth Buchan and Alexander Vipond

Sea State

Starting off Down Under, the Australian government released a request for tender (RFT) for 12 new offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) last week. In a statement released by Minister for Defence Industry Christopher Pyne, local industry considerations will play a key part of the tender selection process. The RFT requires ‘each tenderer to develop an Australian Industry Capability Plan that maximises the opportunities for Australian industry participation.’ The three shortlisted designers for the new vessels are Damen from the Netherlands and two German firms, Lurssen and Fassmer. The OPVs will replace the Royal Australian Navy’s fleet of 13 Armidale-class patrol craft, at an estimated cost of around $3 billion.

The US Navy’s controversial Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) program came under heavy scrutiny during a testy Senate Armed Services Committee hearing last Thursday. The hearing—in which one of the participants stated that the LCS program ‘broke the Navy’—was part of the release of a damning Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on the failures of the LCS program. The GAO report questioned the Navy’s decision to move ahead on purchasing the program’s final 12 ships, citing poor performance and continued uncertainty about the future vessels’ cost and capabilities.

AUS: Local industry the focus for Offshore Patrol Vessel project

The multi-billion dollar Offshore Patrol Vessel project has reached a significant milestone with the release of the Request for Tender to the three shortlisted designers.

The Minister for Defence Industry, the Hon Christopher Pyne MP said the Request for Tender will see Damen, Fassmer and Luerssen team up with Australian shipbuilders.

“We want to ensure the tenderers’ responses maximise Australian industry opportunities through a local build using Australian made steel,” said Minister Pyne.

“The Request for Tender will require each tenderer to develop an Australian Industry Capability Plan that maximises the opportunities for Australian industry participation.

“This includes how they will transition their existing supply chains to Australian supply chains and how they will integrate local suppliers in their global supply chains.

“The project is expected to create around 400 direct jobs and is part of the Government’s commitment to the continuous build of warships in Australia.”