Hanwha Ocean selected as preferred bidder for the Royal Thai Navy's next-generation frigate project

The proposed amount is 683.3 billion won... Ranked above Spain and Singapore

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Hong Gyu-bin = Hanwha Ocean announced on the 9th that it was selected as the preferred negotiating party for the Royal Thai Navy's next-generation frigate introduction project.

The amount proposed by the Royal Thai Navy for the construction of one frigate and integrated logistics support project is 16.73 billion baht (about 683.3 billion won).

In this project, global defense companies including Hanwha Ocean, Spain, Singapore, and Turkiye participated and competed.

Hanwha Ocean was promoted to preferred negotiating party based on its experience in successfully delivering the first frigate 'Bumibol Adulyadej' to the Royal Thai Navy in 2018 and its shipbuilding technology.

Support from the government and military also added strength. Hanwha Ocean explained that the relationship of trust between the two countries, accumulated through the Korean Navy's cruise training group's visit to Thailand and participation in the Cobra Gold joint exercise, became the basis for the project.

Hanwha Ocean announced that it will use this opportunity to strengthen its foundation for long-term maritime and defense cooperation with Thailand while expanding business opportunities in the global surface ship market, including Southeast Asia.

It is interpreted that Hanwha Ocean, which has been targeting overseas markets focusing on submarines where it has relative strengths, plans to expand its export portfolio.

This selection as the preferred bidder is also a triumph for Hanwha Ocean in the special ship business after failing in the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP) worth up to 60 trillion won last July.

The industry expects that the total contract size for Thailand's next-generation frigate project, including follow-up orders, could reach up to 4 trillion won.

Hanwha Ocean said, "By closely coordinating the detailed conditions to build a ship that can satisfy both the Royal Thai Navy and Hanwha Ocean, we will derive optimal contract conditions that will maximize Hanwha Ocean's shipbuilding competitiveness and business efficiency."