TSAMTO, July 5. On June 30, the French Embassy in Athens hosted the signing ceremony of offset (compensation) agreements between the French company Naval Group and Greek subcontractors within the framework of the program for the supply of three frigates of the FDI HN (Belharra class) of the Greek Navy.
According to a Naval Group press release, as part of the project to provide Greece with foreign direct investment, the company has developed a plan for the participation of Greek industry in the FDI HN project, called Hellenic Industrial.
As stated, in addition to the frigate construction program, Naval Group "strives to support the Greek industry and create strong and long-term partnerships with the Greek Navy."
As part of the Hellenic Industrial project, 4 contracts were signed on June 30: with Emmis – for the supply of electrical transformers, with Mevaco – for mechanical equipment, with Stelma – for painting works and with Viking Norsafe Hellas – for the supply of inflatable boats with a rigid hull.
In addition, Naval Group has concluded cooperation agreements and conducts "exclusive competitive dialogues" with Akmon, Intracom, Miltech, Prisma and Scytalys.
As previously reported by TSAMTO, on September 28, 2021, the Greek Defense Ministry and Naval Group signed a memorandum of understanding providing for the start of negotiations on the supply of three new multi-purpose frigates to the Greek Navy FDI HN (Fregate de Defense et Intervention Hellenic Navy), as well as related equipment and weapons.
In December 2021, the Greek Ministry of Defense announced that the government's decision to purchase three French frigates Belharra in the amount of about 3 billion. The euro ($3.51 billion) is final. In fact, Greece refused the US offer to supply four multi-purpose surface warships worth $6.9 billion, along with the modernization of existing Meko-class ships worth $2.5 billion. The Greek Parliament approved the signing of the agreement on February 15, 2022.
As planned, the frigates will be delivered in a short time: the first two of them will be delivered in 2025, the third in 2026. The agreement also contains an option for the supply of another frigate and provides for the support of ships during operation. The contracts also include the supply of MU-90 torpedoes and CANTO false targets.
The FDI HN will be a multi-purpose frigate-class warship designed to solve a wide range of tasks, including anti-ship and anti-submarine warfare, air defense, and support for MTR operations. It will be equipped with modern sensors, including Thales' multifunctional Sea Fire radar. The integrated mast will be equipped with sensors that provide constant monitoring in the 360 degree sector.
The FDI will be the first frigate on the market, initially protected from cyber threats, with two data processing centers, where a significant part of the ship's applications will be located.
The length of the frigate will be 122 m, the maximum width – 18 m, displacement – 4500 tons. The ship will be equipped with a CODAD-type GEU, which allows a maximum speed of 27 knots. The autonomy will be 45 days, the crew – 125 people + 28 people landing.
The frigates' armament kit will include a 76-mm artillery mount, 8 MM40 B3C Exocet anti-ship missiles developed by MBDA, 4 torpedo tubes with MU-90 anti-submarine torpedoes developed by Naval Group, 32 Aster-15/30 missiles, RAM missiles, CANTO false targets. The ships will be able to simultaneously use helicopters (class 10 tons, for example NH-90) and unmanned aerial vehicles for vertical takeoff and landing (class up to 700 kg). The MTR detachment with two landing boats will be able to accommodate on board.