Australia and France to seal next generation sub deal

SYDNEY: France and Australia will sign a multi- billion dollar deal – which Paris has billed as the “contract of the century” – for 12 state- of- the- art submarines, their defence ministers said yesterday.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and France’s Minister of Defence, Jean-Yves Le Drian, will ink the inter- governmental accord in Adelaide with the French shipbuilder DCNS designing and building the Shortfin Barracudas.

Defence Minister Marise Payne said in Sydney the fleet of subs was the “largest defence procurement programme history”.

The overall cost of the submarine fleet, which includes separate agreements with US and Australian contractors, totals Aus$ 50 billion ( US$ 37 billion).

The new contract, which will be signed Tuesday, will lay out the “legal framework under which Australia and France will partner on the future submarine programme over the coming decades”.

She added that it was “a critical milestone in delivering the regionally superior fleet of submarines”. in Australia’s

Australia awarded DCNS the main contract in April to design and build its next generation of submarines, beating off competition from Germany and Japan.

The vessels will be a scaled-down, conventionally powered version of France’s 4,700- tonne nuclearfuelled Barracuda but boast the same stealth capabilities.

Design and mobilisation work has already been launched with Australian experts working in Cherbourg while DCNS will open new offices in Adelaide on Tuesday employing up to 300 engineers. — AFP