The Netherlands announced Friday it has chosen France's Naval Group for a contract to build four attack submarines for its navy. worth billions of euros. The deal is controversial in the Netherlands as local politicians wanted a Dutch manufacturer.
"With the choice of Naval Group, two naval yards didn't win and I understand that the disappointment is large," state secretary for defence Christophe van der Maat said after Naval Group was chosen over Germany's Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) and Sweden's Saab AB, which works in tandem with the Dutch Damen Shipyards.
The Dutch chief of Defence, General Onno Eichelsheim, confirmed on social media that the four new submarines would be built by Naval Group.
"The ships offer increased striking power and improved operational capacity, and will be deployable for different types of missions globally," he posted.
'Large capacity'
According to a factsheet from the Dutch Ministry of Defence, the new submarines will have a "large capacity thanks to modern battery technology".
The torpedoes and cruise missiles have a longer range than those of the older ships, conditions for special forces operations are improved while there's a "reduced chance at detection" of the ship, the document says.
According to the Ministry of Defence, two ships will be delivered within ten years "after the contract has been negotiated".
It points to the complexity of the systems: one submarine contains a million parts, while a fighter jet has only 35,000 parts and a "family car just about 3,000".
Core tasks for the vessels are "strategic influencing" (influencing behaviour of potential enemies with limited military means) and "special forces operations" (eliminating strategic targets or infrastructure, collecting intelligence and preparing follow-up operations).
The subs will carry an unspecified number of torpedoes and cruise missiles. The principle task will be to "collect, analyse and disseminate intelligence".
Finally, says the factsheet, it is the "best boat for the best price" – estimates range from 4 to 6 billion euros, or 1 to 1.5 billion euros per ship.
Fierce debate
The government decision was preceded, last Wednesday, by a debate in the Dutch parliament. The debate was initiated after news that the order was to go to a French company was leaked in the press, triggering anger that the deal didn't go to Dutch companies.
MP Chris Stoffer, whose SGP party is strong in Zeeland province where Naval Group's competitor Damen is based, called the debate. He said: "We do not let this government decide, but a new government that will decide in the interests of the Netherlands."
But the debate was premature, as the government will officially provide parliament with a "technical briefing" on 27 March, which will be limited to information that does not fall under the military secrets act.
This will be followed by a new debate, where parliament can still veto the decision. According to Defence Secretary van der Maat, the final contract must be signed in July as the offers proposed by the different competitors "will expire".
The submarines will perform tasks in that conform to the Dutch 2019 National Defence Doctrine, which warns that "the increased assertiveness of state actors such as China and Russia" brought about a strategic shift from NATO.
"One consequence of this for the Dutch armed forces is a renewed focus on the first main task, for instance through participation by the Dutch armed forces in an enhanced Forward Presence within NATO territory," according to the doctrine.
