TSAMTO, September 20. On September 16, Babcock announced the first export contract for the construction of the Arrowhead 140 – AH140 frigates, having concluded a license agreement with the Indonesian state-owned company PT PAL Indonesia (Persero).
The agreement was signed at the DSEI-2021 (Defense and Security Equipment International) exhibition in London by Babcock CEO David Lockwood and PAL CEO Kaharuddin Djenod in the presence of Indonesian Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto and British Defense Minister Ben Wallace.
However, British officials admit that PT PAL has not yet signed a contract for the supply of frigates with the Indonesian Ministry of Defense.
The design license will allow PT PAL Indonesia to build two Arrowhead-140 frigates in Indonesia, modified in accordance with the requirements of the Indonesian Navy.
The deal was concluded two years after the Arrowhead-140 project was first announced as the preferred bidder for delivery as part of the Type-31 frigate purchase program for the British Navy.
According to Babcock, as part of the promotion of the Arrowhead 140 frigate to the world market, it is cooperating with the British government. Recently, the company announced that it was selected by the Polish government as one of the applicants within the framework of the program for the construction of the Mechnik frigates for the Polish Navy. The Arrowhead-140 project was also proposed by the Greek Navy.
The basic project "Arrowhead 140" can be modified in accordance with the needs of customers and now, with the support of the Indonesian PAL, Babcock will make the necessary changes to the project for the Indonesian fleet.
As reported by TSAMTO, the project of the 138-meter frigate " Arrowhead-140 "was originally developed by a consortium led by Babcock International as part of participation in the program for the supply of light multipurpose frigates of the Type-31 class of the British Navy. It is based on the Iver Huitfeldt-class frigate of the Odense Maritime Technology (OMT) company, which is in service with the Danish Navy.
It is noteworthy that in April 2020, the Indonesian Defense Ministry, in the presence of representatives of PT PAL, as well as PT Sinar Kokoh Persada, representing the Danish Odense Maritime Technology (OMT), signed a preamble to the contract for the purchase of an Iver-Huetfeldt-class frigate variant.
In parallel, as part of the program for the purchase of warships to replace the Ahmad Yani-class frigates (Ahmad Yani/Van Speijk), in June 2021, the Indonesian Ministry of Defense signed a contract with the Italian company Fincantieri for the supply of 6 new Bergamini-class frigates (FREMM), as well as 2 modernized Maestrale-class frigates from the Italian Navy and related logistical support.