According to a press release from the Dutch government, the bids will now be considered by the Netherlands Defence Forces, with a final decision to be made in the first quarter of 2024. Each bidder has also submitted proposals for industrial cooperation to the Dutch Ministry of Climate and Energy. A requirement is that the bid should strengthen the Dutch defence industry and benefit the domestic industry in general.
German Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) offers the Netherlands a variant of the 212CD class, which they have previously sold to Germany and Norway. The consortium previously owned Kockums before Saab acquired it in the summer of 2014. The 212CD E, where E stands for Expeditionary, is among other things larger and has a longer range. ThyssenKrupp states that one of the advantages of their bid is that much of the development costs will be shared with Germany and Norway, as the total production will exceed twelve hulls. The deal with Norway and Germany caused a stir when it was signed in 2021. In what would become TKMS's largest deal, the German and Norwegian defence procurement agencies signed a joint agreement for six identical submarines in ThyssenKrupp's 212CD class valued at approximately 5.5 billion euros.
Naval Group states about its bid that they have been active in the Netherlands since 2017. They want to continue building strategic partnerships with the Dutch industry and emphasise that they are already important for Naval Group's existing export businesses. In an interview with Naval News in November 2022, Laurent Mourre, Commercial Director for Europe and North America, states that they offer a variant of the Barracuda class. The Royal Netherlands Navy is already a leader in submarine capability, and Laurent Mourre states that Naval Group understands that the Netherlands, as a result, has very high demands. Thierry Petit, Submarine Marketing Manager, continues and says that their submarine will perform well in various environments such as the Mediterranean, the North Sea, and the Caribbean.
TKMS's German-Norwegian deal was not the only remarkable submarine event in 2021.
Australia left a multi-billion deal involving twelve submarines with Naval Group in favour of the US-British cooperation now called AUKUS. This happened without warning according to the French. A diplomatic drama ensued, with France recalling its ambassadors from the USA and Australia. The following year, a settlement was reached where Australia paid 550 million euros to Naval Group.
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