Fórum Defesa Brasil

German Navy may take Type 214 submarine originally built for Greece

Sebastian Schulte JDW Correspondent
Bonn

The German Navy is holding talks with ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) about taking in a 214-class submarine originally ordered by the Hellenic Navy, following protracted contractual difficulties between the German shipbuilder and Greece, Jane's has learned.

The unit in question is the submarine S-120 Papanikolis , the first of four 214-class submarines ordered by Athens in 2000. The Greek government refused to accept the submarine in 2006 after sea trials, referring to "technical deficiencies". It still refuses to accept the submarine and has ceased payments altogether, asking for a revision of the nine-year-old contract.

Last September the German defence armaments agency Bundesamt für Wehrtechnik und Beschaffung (BWB) conducted extensive sea trials with Papanikolis and certified the submarine's seaworthiness.

Integration of Papanikolis would be relatively simple, because the 214-class submarine is similar to the 212-class in service with the German Navy, a navy official told Jane's . However, the deal would be conditional on the provisos that it should not obstruct the planned third batch of the German Navy's Type 212 submarines and that it would be funded outside the navy's own regular budget.

"Since the submarine has been built to Greek specifications, we would have to modify it first to meet our own national requirements, especially concerning environmental standards," the official said. "The navy would operate it until a new buyer, or another favourable solution, is found."

It is understood that Greece owes TKMS a total of EUR609 million (USD839 million) in outstanding payments.

TKMS and the Greek Defence Procurement Agency had not responded to requests for comment as JDW went to press.

Walterciclone escreveu:

P44 escreveu:Não se sabe nada definitivo ainda, correm rumores ( e se calhar mais do que isso) sobre o possivel interesse da Polónia no papanikolis...e num futuro não muito distante, em mais DOIS

Se isso acontecer mesmo, vai ser um dos maiores fiascos das relações comerciais gregas em toda a história.

Submarine deal set to surface

Greece is close to agreeing to a deal with Germany that could lead to the resolution of a dispute over a batch of faulty submarines, which has put a severe strain on relations between the two countries, it was revealed yesterday.

Vice Admiral Giorgos Karamalikis, the chief of the Hellenic Navy General Staff, said that the technical problems with the Type 214 diesel-electric submarine were being ironed out and Greece could soon be in a position to accept three of the four vessels that were ordered between 2001 and 2005.

The first submarine, dubbed Papanikolis, was developed by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) in Kiel, Germany, and there was an agreement to build the remaining three at the Hellenic Shipyards, west of Athens.

However, the Greek navy did not accept delivery of the submarine after discovering a number of technical faults, the most serious of which was excessive rolling in bad weather when the vessel surfaced.

The Germans insist that they have since rectified the problems, but Greece has refused to accept the first submarine, which has been docked in Kiel since 2006. The ship’s manufacturers have accused Greece of intentionally dragging out the problem so that they can renegotiate the price.

Now it seems that the two sides have come to a tentative agreement that will see the Greek navy accept three of the four submarines that have been ordered, but not the Papanikolis.

Although Greece accepts that the problems with the vessels have been fixed, the navy is unwilling to use a submarine that has been sitting idle for the past few years.

It seems that the Germans are willing to keep the Papanikolis and try to sell it to another interested buyer, thereby removing the stumbling block to any possible agreement.

The disagreement over the submarines, as well as a row about German-made Leopard tanks bought by Greece and Athens’s decision to buy American F-16 jets rather than Eurofighters, which are manufactured by a consortium that includes Germany, has soured relations between Athens and Berlin over the last few years.

Turkey, Germany To Sign Submarine Deal

ANKARA (A.A) - 02.07.2009 - Turkey is set to sign an agreement Thursday with Germany to build six submarines for the Turkish Naval Forces, said a statement issued by the German Embassy in Ankara.

The deal covers six Class-214 air-independent propulsion (AIP) submarines by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft GmbH (HDW), a part of the ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems shipbuilding group, the statement said.

The new class submarines will improve significantly the capability of the Turkish Naval Forces to undertake longer under water operations, the statement said.

A signing ceremony is scheduled today which will gather senior Turkish and German government officials, and naval forces commanders.

Turkish Defence Industries Undersecretariat has said the submarines would be co-produced with maximum local content at Golcuk Naval Shipyard in Kocaeli, Turkey.

Defence Minister Vecdi Gonul has also stated that Turkish industrial participation in the project would be worth around 80 percent of the total value of the deal.

As the Turkish Type 214 will have a significant amount of Turkish indigenous systems on board, this variant of the Type 214 will be known as the Type 214TN (Turkish Navy).

HDW will preassemble structural and mechanical parts of the submarine in Germany, or classified elements such as the fuel cells and propulsion system and will then ship them to Turkey.

All electronic and weapon systems, including sensors, communications, and data processing systems, will be of Turkish design and production.

jp escreveu:Putz! A Turquia vai logo de seis!!! E com AIP.
Mas, tudo bem.. estamos no jogo e correndo atrás de décadas de desleixo e atraso.
Vamos chegar lá.

são os turcos e os portugas

Corsário01 escreveu:O fatos destes paises terem optado pelo 214 não quer dizer que o Scorpene seja ruim ou inferior.
Cada país tem que escolher o que lhe convém.
Parabéns pela escolha do 214 aos que o escolheram, mas, o Brasil escolheu outro. E ponto!

Parabéns pela escolha do 214 aos que o escolheram, mas, o Brasil escolheu outro. E ponto!

luis F. Silva escreveu:

Parabéns pela escolha do 214 aos que o escolheram, mas, o Brasil escolheu outro. E ponto!

Escolheram aquele igual aos dos chilenos e que há dois anos aqui no FD não prestavam?

luis F. Silva escreveu:

Parabéns pela escolha do 214 aos que o escolheram, mas, o Brasil escolheu outro. E ponto!

Escolheram aquele igual aos dos chilenos e que há dois anos aqui no DB não prestavam?