India taps S-70B for MRH negotiations

[Major Shaitan Singh]

India will enter negotiations with Sikorsky for 16 S-70B Seahawk helicopters for the country’s long-running Multi-Role Helicopter (MRH) requirement.

“Negotiations will now begin to procure 16 S-70B Seahawk helicopters, with an option for eight additional aircraft, along with a complete logistics support and training program,” says Sikorsky in a statement.

The helicopters will be equipped for the antisubmarine warfare (ASW) and anti-surface warfare (AsuW) roles, serving both from warships and land bases.

In an interview with Flightglobal in November, the president of Sikorsky’s defence business, Sam Metha, said that its India offer would be similar to the teaming model used in its sale of 109 S-70s to Turkey, in that India will have broad remit to integrate locally-developed systems aboard the helicopter.

In regard to offsets it will offer related to the India programme, Mehta said the company is looking at supportability and follow on support.

“We want to make sure there is organic support capability in India,” he said. “Logistics to and from India could be challenging, and maritime helicopters place a high emphasis on availability.”

Sikorksy’s main rival for the MRH requirement was the NH Industries NH90.

Mehta adds that Sikorsky is also interested in New Delhi’s follow on Naval Multi-Role Helicopter (NMRH) competition for over 120 naval helicopters.

​India taps S-70B for MRH negotiations - 12/8/2014 - Flight Global

 

[Hindustani78]

ASW chopper deal stuck due to price escalation | Zee News
Last Updated: Friday, August 7, 2015 - 19:21
New Delhi: A deal for buying multi-role helicopters for the Indian Navy from US firm Sikorsky has not yet been finalised, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said on Friday, adding this was due to price escalation by the firm.

"Procurement proposal for the helicopters is being processed in accordance with the Defence Procurement Procedure and the request of Sikorsky for price escalation was not found acceptable by the Contract Negotiation Committee (CNC)," Parrikar said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.

"The vendor has been informed accordingly," he added.

India was to buy 16 Sikorsky S-70B Seahawk helicopters but following delays in inking the deal, the cost had increased from Rs 17.60 billion (USD 275 million) sanctioned by the Defence Ministry in 2007 to over Rs 50 billion.

Sources added the the Defence Ministry has now ordered fresh negotiations.

In December last year, the Indian Navy had selected the Sikorskys to fulfil its requirement of for anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare.

 

[Hindustani78]

Fresh negotiations with Sikorsky for naval helicopters: Manohar Parrikar - The Economic Times

NEW DELHI: Defence Ministry has started fresh cost negotiations with the US firm Sikorsky for purchase of 16 multi-role naval helicopters, Lok Sabha was told today.

In a written reply to Lok Sabha, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said the procurement proposal for the helicopters is being processed in accordance with the Defence Procurement procedure and the request for price escalation was not found acceptable by the Contract Negotiation Committee (CNC).


"The vendor has been informed accordingly," he said.

Defence sources said that fresh rounds of negotiations have started now and it has been made clear that the price cannot be escalated.

In December last, the Navy had selected Sikorsky's S-70B Seahawk, a 10-tonne twin-engine helicopter with advanced anti-ship and anti-submarine warfare capability.

The US firm was the only left in the fray after the "partial ban" on European company Finmeccanica.

The "partial ban" was imposed on Finmeccanica, the parent company of AgustaWestland that was involved in a Rs 3,550 crore VVIP helicopter deal controversy, in August last year.

While imposing the ban on it, the Defence Acquisition Council had said it would not be able to take part in any future defence deals.

Finmecccanica was part of consortium European NH 90 which had made a bid for the deal.

The Seahawk is a naval variant of the US Army's Black Hawk UH 60 helicopter.

The Navy had floated a tender for 16 helicopters with an option for another eight in 2008.

Seahawk S-70B can be used for advanced anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare to take on underwater and over water threats.

 

[Hindustani78]

https://www.thehindu.com/news/natio...fence-acquisition-council/article24780133.ece

Representational image | Photo Credit: K. Pichumani


In all, the DAC gave approvals for procurement deals worth approximately ₹46,000 crores.

The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) that met on Saturday, cleared the procurement of 24 Multi Role Helicopters (MRH) for the Navy.

In another decision, the DAC gave the formal approval for procurement of 111 Naval Utility Helicopters at a cost of over ₹21,000 crores.

“This is the first project under the MoD’s prestigious Strategic Partnership (SP) Model that aims at providing significant fillip to the Government’s ‘Make in India’ programme,” the Defence Ministry said in a statement.

SP model envisages indigenous manufacturing of major defence platforms by an Indian Strategic Partner under technology transfer from a foreign Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM).

The validity of the DAC decision is 18 months, within which the Navy has to process the deal and the selected OEM will then tie up with a suitable Indian partner to manufacture the helicopters in India.

This will be the pilot project under the SP model and pave the way for clarity on the other three projects in the pipeline, a defence official observed.

Government to Government deal

The 24 MRH will be procured under a Government to Government deal. The Navy has earlier selected the MH-60 MRH but the deal fell through due to price issues. The deal is estimated to cost about $1.8bn.

An announcement on the purchase of the MRH is expected during the 2+2 talks scheduled to be held on September 6.

Navy helicopter passes over Singapore naval frigate

 

[sathya]

@ribko

 

[Hindustani78]

A Sea King helicopter of the Indian Navy. File | Photo Credit: The Hindu

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/norms-soon-to-buy-naval-copters/article24785958.ece

Industry seeks clarity on legal, liability issues under Strategic Partnership model

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is shortly expected to release project-specific implementation guidelines for the 111 Naval Utility Helicopters to be procured under the Strategic Partnership (SP) model. However, foreign companies say there is still some clarity required on crucial legal, liability and technology transfer issues.

Two issues

“There are two important issues that need clarity. One is legal. We can’t sell a submarine or fighter jet to a private company. Global regulations do not allow that. It has to be to a government owned company. So, there has to be a government to government component in the end,” a top executive of a foreign company said.

For the first time, under the SP model, Indian private companies will get to tie up with global Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM) and build major defence platforms in India under technology transfer. So far, it was Defence Public Sector Undertakings (DPSU) which played the lead role.

The other issue, he stated was issue of liability of the end product. “For us to stand guarantee to the finished product built by a local company is a problem. There has to be a backend mechanism to enable us,” he noted.

This liability issue was one of the major reasons the earlier Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) deal for 126 jets got derailed at the contract negotiation stage after Dassault Aviation refused to stand guarantee to the aircraft manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

Large infrastructure
Another senior executive observed that there is large infrastructure already present in the country with DPSUs and this must be utilised for the benefit of both the country as well as form a business sense. “We hope to try and use that. There is no point reinventing everything. It will be risk mitigating for everyone,” he observed.

There is need for some clarity from the MoD on production transfer and technology transfer as well, the executive added.

End of July, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) cleared the general as well as project specific implementation guidelines for NUH that would lay emphasis on transfer of technology and high absorption of indigenous content. The guidelines and the qualification guidelines are yet to be communicated to the industry.

All procurements under the SP Model would be executed by specially constituted Empowered Project Committees (EPC) to ensure timely execution, the MoD has stated. Apart from NUH, the other projects to be processed under the SP model are fighter aircraft, submarines under P-75I and armoured vehicles.

 

[Tshering22]

For all this time that they took (since 2011, when the initial discussion was floated), they could have brought IMRH to at least a prototype level.