The RFP for the Project 75 (I) was sent to France’s Naval Group-DCNS, Russia’s Rosoboronexport, Germany’s Thyssenkrupp, Spain’s Navantia and South Korea’s Daewoo. As this project will be completed under the Strategic-Partnership model. All three European and Russian companies have now pulled out of this project, leaving only Navantia and Daewoo in the race.

These five companies had to choose between two Indian companies, Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) or Larsen & Toubro (L&T), to manufacture these six submarines in India.

The provision was to build these six conventional submarines in the country only in a joint venture with a foreign company.

Scorpenes Under Construction

The Naval Group is making six Scorpène-class submarines in collaboration with MDL. Of these, four, the Kalvari-class submarines, have joined the Navy, the fifth is under sea-trial and the sixth Vagsheer was launched earlier this month.

These are six conventional diesel-electric submarines. AIP, ie, Air-Independent Propulsion system developed by DRDO will be retrofitted during mid-life upgrade. The advantage of AIP is that they will not need to get out of the sea again and again. That is, in a way, they are stealth-submarines. AIP allows non-nuclear submarines to operate without access to atmospheric oxygen. These stealth-submarines do not need to be taken out of the sea like the diesel-electric submarines.

Background

Vagsheer — the last of six Indian-made Scorpene-class submarines — was lowered into the water for trials in Apil. The Indian Navy has six new underwater boats, four of which (Kalvari, Khanderi, Karanj and Vela) are in service and the others (Vagir and Vagsheer) will be commissioned by early 2023.

Failure to conclude the construction of six more Project 75(I) conventional submarines with AIP will mean the assembly line will be idle. Technical skills to manufacture a submarine will be lost if a deal is not finalised soon.

India commenced getting its Foxtrot-class submarines from December 1967, from the then USSR. By 1974, it had eight such submarines. In 1981, New Delhi entered into an agreement with German HDW, to buy two Type 209 submarines. While these submarines — INS Shalki and INS Shankul — were being built the HDW scam broke out. The government did not use the ‘option clause’ in the agreement for the construction of two additional submarines.

By 2028-29 most of the Kilo-class submarines may be out of action. The Russian submarines have been the mainstay of the Indian fleet for the past two decades. As replacement for the old Foxtrots, India turned to Moscow and bought ten Kilo-class boats, commencing mid-1980s. The last of the Kilo-class boat – INS Sindhushastra – was commissioned in 2000. Of these, INS Sindhurakshak exploded and sank near Mumbai in 2013. India gifted the decommissioned INS Sindhuvir to the Myanmar Navy. Seven out of the eight remaining submaines have outlived their lifespan but are still functioning due to upgrades.

In February 1999, the Cabinet Committee on Security approved a 30-year plan that envisaged two production lines – P-75 and P-75I – to make 12 submarines at two Indian shipyards.

The UPA government signed the Rs 23,653 crore P-75 deal in 2005. As per the contract, the French supplier DCNS was to deliver all the six submarines — manufactured at MDL — by 2012. Though the 30-year plan envisaged two production lines operating simultaneously, the government decided to go for only one.

The first Scorpene submarine was handed over to the Indian Navy in 2017, five years late.

The defence ministry had, in April 2021, cleared the way for the construction of six new stealth P75I submarines for the Indian Navy amid the challenges being faced by China in the Indian Ocean. The Defence Acquisition Council had given the green signal under the Strategic Partnership Model. The ministry issued the RFP in July 2021. The cost of this project named Project 75 (India) is Rs 43,000 crore.

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The fifth submarine of Project 75, Yard 11879, Indian Navy’s Kalvari class commenced her sea trials on 1 February 22. The submarine was launched in Nov 2020 from the KanhojiAngre Wet Basin of Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL). The submarine would be named Vagir, after commissioning.

The submarine will now undergo intense trials of all its systems at sea, including propulsion systems, weapons and sensors. The submarine is scheduled for delivery to the Indian Navy in the year 2022 after completion of these trials

The Indian Navy has two ongoing conventional submarine programs, with a third one on the way.

In Phase I, six submarines of Scorpene-class (P-75) are to be constructed at Mazagon Dock Limited, Mumbai. Two submarines of the project namely INS Kalvari and Khanderi have been commissioned in December 2017 and September 2019 respectively. The remainder submarines are likely to be inducted every nine months. The last submarine is likely to be delivered in June 2022.

Six submarines are to be constructed under P-75(I) under the Strategic Partnership (SP) model promulgated by the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) on 31 May 2017. Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for the case was accorded by DAC on 27 February 2019. A multidisciplinary Empowered Project Committee (EPC) was constituted by MoD on 15 February 2019 to steer the project from ‘EoI issuance’ to ‘Contract Conclusion’. The Request for Expression of Interest (REoI) for shortlisting of SPs and Foreign, Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEMs) was issued on 20 June 2019 and 2 July 2019 respectively. The response of SPs have been received on 11 September 2019. The response of Foreign OEMs have been received on 24 September 2019. The Request for Proposal (RFP) for the case would be issued in mid-2020. The induction of the submarines would be between 2027-2032.

In Phase II, twelve submarines of an indigenous design are envisaged to be constructed in India in this phase with the experience gained and technology absorbed from the construction of submarines under Phase I.

About Scorpène Submarines

Scorpène is a conventional submarine designed by the Naval Group for the export market. It demonstrates both the Naval Group’s ability to deliver best-in-class submarines and to conduct successful transfers of technology. Today 14 Scorpène submarines are in operational service or being built, for the Chilean Navy (2 units), the Malaysian Navy (2 units), the Indian Navy (6 units), and the Brazilian Navy (4 units).

The Scorpène design is adapted to fit each navy’s specific requirements. Thus, the Brazilian Scorpène is slightly longer to carry a larger crew, almost double the patrol range, and be able to cover greater distances.

Scorpène is ideally suited for action and operational effectiveness. Robust and enduring, it’s an ocean-going submarine also designed for shallow waters operations. Multipurpose, it fulfills the entire scope of missions such as anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare, special operations, offensive minelaying and intelligence gathering. Integrating improvements from the French Barracuda-Class fast-attack submarine, Scorpène has cutting-edge capabilities.

P75 Kalvari-class key data

Length: 67,56 m +10 m with the future AIP Plug

Autonomy:  Up to 52 days

Displacement:  

Surface: 1615 tons

Submerged: 1775 tons

Crew: Up to 44 men

Weapons:

-6 x 533mm tubes

-Up to 18 heavyweight weapons.

-SM-39 Exocet antiship missile (MBDA)

-SUT 266 Legacy heavyweight torpedo (Atlas Elektronik)

-Mines

Hunt For Submarine Rescue Simulators

The MoD has issued a Request for Information (RFI) for submarine rescue simulators in January 2022. It is acquiring two sets of simulators that would train Navy personnel to operate submarine rescue vessel (SRV) and remotely operated vehicle (ROV) systems.

A simulator is a program or equipment that creates a virtual replica of a real-life environment, such as a flight simulator, for the purpose of training or experimentation. The SRV one should be able to simulate the actual vehicle’s rolling and pitching motions, as well as have the same “look, feel, functions, man-machine interface, and response time” as the Indian Navy’s Deep-Submergence Rescue Vehicle (DSRV).

A DSRV is a type of deep-submergence vehicle used for submarine rescue operations and covert missions. India is one of the select countries that possess this capability. It has two DSRVs that it procured from James Fishers & Sons, a UK-based company.

The Indian Navy inducted its first DSRV in 2018 and the second one in 2019. Further, in 2020, a DSRV Complex was inaugurated at Vishakhapatnam to ensure the operational readiness of the vehicles with all equipment intact and ready to use.

With a growing fleet of submarines in the Indian Navy and its plans for expanding its fleet to deal with the challenges in the near seas, India’s Ministry of Defense has earnestly pursued the DSRV project.

In the Goa Maritime Conclave attended by Indian Navy commanders and delegations from Indian Ocean countries last year, the service displayed its submarine rescue capability. Only a few countries in the IOR possess this capability.

The Indian Navy is equipped with two full third-generation fly-away submarine rescue systems. It received Deep Search and Rescue Vehicles (DSRV), Launch and Recovery Systems (LARS) equipment, Transfer under Pressure (TUP) systems, and all logistics and support equipment by the manufacturer. A 25-year all-inclusive maintenance support service was also included in the contract, according to JFD.

The equipment can reach a maximum depth of 650 meters and rescue 14 people in a single operation. Because submarine mishaps can happen anywhere, the DSRVs are built to be agile and easily transportable to remote locations

The entire system has been separated into 24 components, each with the footprint of a typical container and capable of being moved by road, sea, or air.

Heavy transport planes such as the IL-76 and C-17 could transport the DSRV, which is linked to the mother ship INS Sabarmati.

The Navy also looks forward to participating in international submarine rescue exercises to sharpen their skills and deepen ties with neighbors and partners.

In April 2021, India had dispatched two DSRVs to locate the missing Indonesian submarine KRI Nanggala, but they were pulled back mid-way after the Indonesian Navy reported that it had identified the missing sub’s debris.

During trials in 2018, the DSRV submerged to a depth of 666 meters, breaking the record for the deepest submergence by a manned vessel in the Indian seas.

The DSRV crew has also performed Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) operations at greater than 750 meters and Side Scan Sonar operations at greater than 650 meters.

While the simulators have massive benefits, they do not aim to replace the training conducted on actual platforms. They merely familiarize the personnel with the platform that they will be required to operate. It is a time and cost-effective training instrument that is employed by militaries around the world.

In September 2021, the Defense Ministry issued a policy for increased use of simulators by armed forces to provide safe and cost-effective realistic training while preserving expensive equipment.

The policy aims to reduce live equipment utilization, ensure capability plans account for phased induction of simulators, factor in simulator requirements when planning procurements, and establish a coordination mechanism among various agencies for a combined purchase of simulators, according to a statement from the ministry.

As the focus of warfare and power assertion shifts to the sea, the Indian Navy seems to be strengthening its contingency efforts as well as enhancing its prospects of becoming the net security provider in the IOR in a true sense.

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