PARIS: Australia said France, Germany and Japan were potential partners to design and build its next generation of submarines, its biggest ever defence procurement programme. “France, Germany and Japan have emerged as potential international partners,” he said.
As Canberra seeks to replace its ageing Collins Class fleet, Defence Minister Kevin Andrews said all three countries had proven military design and build capabilities and were currently producing submarines.
The competitive evaluation process will help the government balance important considerations including capability, cost, schedule, and risk. Interoperability with our alliance partner, the United States, will also be a fundamental consideration.”
The diesel and electric-powered Collins Class submarines are set to be retired from the mid-2020s, with the programme to replace them the largest defence procurement project in Australian history worth some Aus$50 billion (US$39 billion).
The Australian military confirmed last month that it was in talks with Japan and others on the design and production but this is the first time it has narrowed down the countries it would invite to bid to be part of the process.
Andrews said the government would seek proposals from the three with options for designing and building the submarines overseas, in Australia or a combination of both. He added that he expected significant work to be undertaken in Australia during the build phase.
There are concerns the domestic ship-building industry would be fatally hurt by Canberra choosing off-the-shelf submarines from Japan or another international supplier.
