Babcock International has signed an Arrowhead 140 (AH140) frigate design licence agreement with state-owned enterprise PT PAL Indonesia. The contract was secured through a design licence agreement with PT PAL Indonesia.
The signing took place at the Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) 2021 event in London. It marks the first export contract for its AH140 frigate.
Babcock noted that the contract comes two years after the AH140 design was first announced as the preferred bidder for the UK Type 31 frigate programme.
The agreement will enable PAL to construct two modified versions of the AH140 frigates in Indonesia.
With Babcock’s support, PAL will now work on the necessary modifications to configure the AH140 for the Indonesian Navy.
Babcock CEO David Lockwood said: “Working with our Indonesian colleagues this contract will see Arrowhead 140 frigates built in Indonesia, by the local workforce, contributing directly to the social and economic value of its sovereign shipbuilding community and country as a whole.
“We look forward to further opportunities to support PAL as the programme matures.”
Arrowhead 140’s baseline is designed to meet a wide range of naval requirements, stated Babcock.
UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “I was delighted to attend the contract signing between Babcock and Indonesia onboard HMS Argyll today, representing the best of British maritime design and engineering to our international partners.
“Signalling the strength of our defence relationship with Indonesia, both of our naval forces will operate this world-leading frigate in the future and will work closely together to protect our mutual interests around the world.”
Arrowhead 140 is a general-purpose light frigate being developed by Team 31, which is led by Babcock International. Team 31 comprises Thales Group, Harland and Wolff, BMT, OMT and Ferguson Marine.
Launched in May 2018, the Arrowhead 140 is designed to meet the requirements of the UK Navy’s Type 31e general-purpose frigate programme.
The frigates are being built by Babcock Team 31 with the first ship scheduled to be in the water by 2023.
In August last year, Babcock Team 31 completed a Whole Ship Preliminary Design Review for the vessel.
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