Newsletter navale

DCNS et MBDA proposent au Qatar trois frégates ATBM (défense antimissile balistique), armées de missiles Aster 30 (MBDA et Thales) et de missiles mer-mer Exocet. Le contrat est estimé à 2,5 milliards d'euros environ.

Pakistan can deliver ships of any size “minus the aircraft carrier” to Gulf countries, especially Qatar, at 30% less construction cost than what Western manufacturers offer, a senior Pakistani official has said.

In an interview, Rear Admiral Syed Hasan Nasir Shah, who is a serving Pakistan Navy officer and managing director of Karachi Shipyard & Engineering Works (KSEW), said his organisation’s various international certifications prove that the country’s ship- and submarine-building capacity is on a par with the best in the world.

Pakistan has only one shipyard, the KSEW, which comes under its Ministry of Defence Production. Even though its naval forces boast of an impressive array of indigenously built fleet of warships and submarines, the country today is known more for its ship-breaking industry at Gadani than its modern facilities at the KSEW.

When asked how the KSEW plans to create a space for itself in the extremely competitive environment, Shah said his shipyard offers many advantages to potential customers in the Gulf, least of which is geographical proximity.

“The best advantage of our shipyard is in the quality of our manpower and affordability in terms of man hours,” he said.

He explained that these days, around 40% of the total cost of building a ship in Europe goes into the material for electronics, weapons and auxiliary systems. The remaining 60% goes into manpower and construction.

“Our edge is that we can cut the cost of that 60% into half. So, if you want to buy a ship of European standard, you will not only get the best of the world from our Karachi shipyard, but also be able to save 30% on the cost of construction. That is the promise I am making to our friends in the Gulf region, especially in our interactions with senior Qatari officials,” he said.

About the types of ships that can be built, the senior official said: “We can build any ship in the world minus the aircraft carrier. We can build a deep-sea submarine or frigate-sized warship. We are not into making Very Large Crude Carriers or the Ultra Large Crude Carriers, but we can do that, too, if we wanted because they are the easiest ships to make… they are like building shoe boxes.”

Since it was established in 1956, the shipyard has built more than 440 ships and repaired over 500 others.

At the moment, the KSEW is not so much in the international competition. Though it has orders to build ships within the country, it is still lacking in bagging orders from abroad. 

“KSEW in the last eight years has delivered state-of-the-art frigate, missile crafts and harbour utility vessels. Currently, we are building a massive 17,000-tonne fleet tanker, which even most top shipbuilders are not making today,” he said.

The official hinted that ship deals also had to do more with government-to-government relations and economy of the country. Nonetheless, he added that the shipyard had recently given detailed proposals to clients in Saudi Arabia and Yemen, though a deal was yet to conclude there.

In the past, though, the KSEW has built ships for Gulf countries. “We have in the past delivered ships to Saudi Arabia and the UAE. In fact, the first Baynunah-class ship was made in (the) Karachi shipyard in the early ‘70s for the UAE. When Sheikh Zayed bin Nahyan came to Karachi to take possession of the ship, it was a historic day for us.”

Troisième volet de notre série sur la diplomatie de la France au Moyen-Orient, le Qatar. Rafale, hélicoptères de transport NH90, véhicules blindés (VBCI) et défense aérienne...De très belles commandes pourraient prochainement être décrochées par la France à Doha.

...A plus long terme, à l'horizon 2020, le Qatar souhaite renforcer sa composante navale. MBDA et le groupe naval DCNS proposeront deux frégates de 4.000 à 4.500 tonnes équipées de systèmes anti-missiles Aster 30. Enfin, le Qatar pourrait choisir rapidement à l'issue d'un appel d'offres un constructeur pour équiper la marine qatarie de quatre corvettes destinées à veille sous-marine. DCNS est sur les rangs avec la Gowind et propose son système de combat, le Setis.

02/04/2014

(Infodefensa.com) Madrid - Navantia still in the race to provide the Navy Tasting four new corvettes and options have increased. The Qataris authorities have decided to divide its shipbuilding program in two and have signed a preliminary agreement on the smaller side (six patrol boats and divers support vessel) at a local shipyard, associated with Dutch Damen . "What suggests Navantia options are higher," industry sources materialize, "is the fact that the corvettes were not included in the draft agreement with the local shipyard."

According to these sources, "for political reasons" it was clear that the domestic industry should be something, but everything. Hence, hopes for Spanish options increase to meet the "big piece of the pie" is not included in signing negotiations with the vessels minor. These boats six patrol vessels 50 meters in length and a support vessel 53 meters divers pose less technical than the corvettes complexities, so they are more feasible for the local industry.

On 27 April signed the trade fair Dimdex 2014 Doha a memorandum of understanding ( MOU ) with Nakilat-Damen Shipyard Qatar ( NSDQ ) to negotiate the construction only six patrolmen and a support vessel divers, leaving open the preliminary agreement on the corvettes.

Navantia, in any case, had submitted bids to the Qatar Marine for all vessels, although confirmed from the company, "the construction of four corvettes, which has a much higher value to the patrol, focusing the interest of the company Spanish ".

The six patrol boats and divers support vessel on which has already been agreed to start negotiations will be built at shipyard Damen Dutch company that is in joint venture with state-owned Qatar Nakilat .

1,900 tons 90 meters in length

Today, following the decision of the 27th, the Spanish company has technical discussions with Navy Qatar aimed at obtaining the next contract. For him, Navantia has introduced a version of its Avante 1800 , a ship of 89.8 eters long, 13.2 wide and 1,900 tons displacement, capable of traveling at 15 knots and maximum travel 3000 miles. Its maximum continuous speed of 25 knots and is designed to achieve a range of 21 days with all the personnel on board.

This development also has a flight deck 16.1 12.7 meters, plus a retractable hangar, from which you can operate a medium helicopter. Altogether has full authorization to 82 people.

This is similar to coastal surveillance vessels (boat BVL ) and built to Venezuela .

Today at DIMDEX 2014, the Naval Defence and Maritime Security exhibition currently held in Doha, the Qatar Coast Guard Services placed an order for 17 new fast patrol boast from Turkish company ARES Shipyard.

Further expanding on business relations between Qatar and Turkey, Deputy of Director Logistics Department, Brig. Abdullah Saad Al Kharji, representing the Ministry of Interior for the State of Qatar and Kerim Kalafatoglu, Chairman & Executive Director for ARES Shipyard, today signed an initial Memorandum of Understanding to deliver 17 new fast patrol boats within the next 56 months for the Qatar Coast Guard Services. ARES Shipyard are a specialist composite boat builder (though they also build in aluminium and steel) located on the southern shores of Turkey, in the Antalya Free-Zone.

The deal of 17 vessels consists in 10x "ARES 110 Hercules" multi-role patrol craft, 5x "ARES 75 Hercules" multi-role patrol craft and 2x "ARES 150 Hercules" multi-role patrol craft. These Fast Patrol Boats will be constructed using advanced composite materials and are expected to be completed within the next 5 years.

The "ARES 110 Hercules" multi-role patrol craft is intended for littoral and coastal waters law-enforcement, open sea rescue operations and naval duties. It is 33 meters in length and displaces 117 tons. Its maximum speed is 47 knots.

The Qatari Navy is currently considering the acquisition of its own corvettes. For the time being, the country has relied primarily on smaller patrol vessels. Its most substantial vessels are four Vita-class fast attack craft (480 tons) and three Combattante III fast attack craft (430 tons). Officials have proposed bolstering the Qatari Navy’s capabilities with the addition of four corvettes, and the favoured option appears to be Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding’s Sigma-class corvette (1,690 tons). Several vessels of this design have been in service with the Indonesian Navy and the Royal Moroccan Navy since 2009, with an additional four having recently been purchased by the Vietnamese military. Whether Qatar will follow through with this purchase remains to be seen, but it would certainly enhance the capabilities of the Qatari Navy and the country’s position in the region.

The Kuwaiti Navy and the Royal Bahrain Naval Force are two notable exceptions to the trend of modernization and expansion in the region. The Kuwaiti Naval Force possesses a limited number of vessels, the most substantial of which is a single Al-Estqlaal-class fast attack craft (410 tons) and commissioned in 1983. The remainder of the Kuwaiti fleet consists of nine fast attack craft (250 tons) and various support vessels. There are no plans for Kuwait to acquire a corvette-like vessel in the near future; much of the budget for the Kuwaiti Naval Force has been directed toward the purchase of several landing craft. Meanwhile, Bahrain is experiencing a corvette-sized gap in its fleet. The flagship of the Royal Bahrain Naval Force is an Oliver Perry-class frigate (4,100 tons), which first entered into service with the United States Navy in 1981 and was subsequently transferred to Bahrain as a gift in 1996. Beyond this, Bahrain also operates two Al-Manama class corvettes (630 tons) and four Ahmed Al-Fateh class missile boats (260 tons), all of which were acquired from the German manufacturer Lürssen in the 1980s.

An unknown quality in the region’s maritime affairs is the future of the Royal Saudi Navy. While Saudi Arabia is certainly a leader among the navies of the Gulf Cooperation Council, there are few details available regarding the plans for this country’s maritime forces. There are some indications that Saudi Arabia was offered a package by the United States Navy, consisting of two destroyers and an undisclosed number of Littoral Combat Ships. Whether this package was accepted is unclear. It seems that Lockheed Martin initially offered eight Littoral Combat Ships for the express purpose of joining the Saudi fleet in the Persian Gulf, but again little is known as to how negotiations proceeded – if at all.

The current array of vessels in service with the Royal Saudi Navy, however, is well known. Three Al-Riyadh class frigates (4,700 tons), which are essentially modified La Fayette-class frigates acquired from the French Navy, have been in service since 2002-2003. An additional four Al-Madinah class frigates (2,600 tons) were produced in France but have been in service since 1985-1986. Also aged, four Badr-class corvettes (1,040 tons) have been in service since 1981-1983. While this represents an ample contingent in comparison to the smaller Gulf states, it must also be noted that the Royal Saudi Navy has its forces split between the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf.

Las ofertas comerciales de Navantia en el extranjero dependen, en cierto modo, de la situación política de cada país. La muerte del presidente venezolano Hugo Chávez a primeros del pasado marzo aplazó 'sine die' un acuerdo con la constructora naval para la construcción a corto plazo de dos patrulleros, similares a los siete que se habían fabricado en los astilleros de la Bahía entre 2005 y 2012. De hecho, tanto el presidente de Navantia, José Manuel Revuelta, como el responsable de la SEPI, Ramón Aguirre, tenían tan atada esta posibilidad de carga de trabajo para las factorías españolas que lo anunciaron en septiembre a bombo y platillo durante una visita a los centros de Cádiz. El nuevo presidente de la república bolivariana, Nicolás Maduro, será el encargado ahora de autorizar o no esta inversión. De momento, la difícil situación económica por la que atraviesa su país no le dejan tiempo para pensar en inversiones militares.

No es el único revés que ha recibido Navantia en lo que va de año. La abdicación del emir de Catar en su hijo anunciada ayer abre un nuevo espacio de negociación para los intereses españoles con los Emiratos Árabes. El jeque Hamad bin Jalifa al Thani, cederá el testigo a su hijo y heredero, el jeque Tamim bin Hamad al Thani, y destacó que, a partir de ahora, ocupará «otra posición para servir a la nación y al pueblo». Navantia se juega en Catar un contrato millonario para la construcción de once barcos: cuatro corbetas, seis patrulleros y un buque logístico.

La empresa española ha quedado finalista en el concurso público junto a la oferta presentada por Alemania, Francia y Holanda. La mediación del Rey Juan Carlos con el emir durante los últimos meses ha sido clave para fijar la posición de Navantia de cara al futuro de este contrato, que supone una inversión de 3.000 millones de euros. Sin embargo, la abdicación enfría en cierto modo la decisión del gobierno catarí hasta que no se consolide la transición de poderes. Navantia confiaba que Catar resolviera el contrato a finales de este año o principios de 2014, pero todo apunta a que la decisión tardará en llegar.

Las relaciones entre España y Catar son fluidas. El emir saliente y su esposa visitaron nuestro país en abril de 2011 y Zarzuela esperaba devolver la visita del monarca español una vez que don Juan Carlos se recuperara de sus últimas operaciones.

Los gestores comerciales de Navantia aguardan también que el gobierno de Arabia Saudí mueva ficha y autorice el programa de renovación de su flota, que incluye la construcción de 12 fragatas. En esta misma línea se encuentran acciones comerciales con Turquía, Brasil y Australia, que esperan el pronunciamiento de sus respectivos gobiernos.

Ante esta situación de incertidumbre internacional, la compañía española ha encomendado su futuro más inmediato a la inversión que pueda generar la iniciativa privada. Así, el ministro Montoro ha asegurado la carga de trabajo para los astilleros españoles amparándose para ello en un posible contrato para la construcción de cuatro gaseros. Se trata de la nueva ruta gasística abierta entre Estados Unidos y Japón que explotará el consorcio español Repsol-Gas Natural. Ambas empresas han anunciado la convocatoria de un concurso para contar con cuatro gaseros. Montoro media para que esta inversión cristalice en los astilleros españoles.