China considers buying four Russian Amur-Class AIP submarines

China reportedly signed two military sale frameworks with Moscow, of which Russia will jointly build four Amur-Class AIP submarines with China and sell them to the country while China will buy 24 Su-35 fighters from Russia, reports Sina's military news portal.

 

It is the first major military procurement China has made with Russia in 10 years, said the report. China needs submarines to counter threats from India's fleet and build a fleet to resist America's influence, said the Voice of Russia, the Russian government's international radio broadcasting service. A manager for a Russian national defense export company said Moscow and Beijing have been negotiating over submarine technologies. China has not revealed how many submarines it wants to buy and has not scheduled to sign a supply contract.

 

It is natural for India and China to show interest in Russia's Amur-Class submarines, said a retired Russian Navy general named Sivkov. The submarine is superior to the export version of China's 877 submarine and China would want the Amur-Class vessel since India has them. The Russian submarine can also effectively fight against American submarines and destroy Los Angeles and Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarines from long distances. Since it produces little noise underwater, American submarines cannot detect the its presence. The characteristic allow the submarine to make fire warning shots or destroy enemy ships effectively during real battles.

 

Although the Amur-Class submarine can attack multiple targets on land, it cannot carry an anti-guided missile system. China does not own any submarine-based anti-missile systems as of now.

 

India's defense ministry made emergency orders over concerns of the country's declining defense capabilities. India has skipped the bidding process and ordered two diesel-electric Amur-Class submarines 677 from Russia to enhance its sea combat capabilities.

 

Currently China owns 60-plus submarines while India has 14 with a leased Russian-made nuclear-powered submarine Nerpa since 2012. The vessel is superior to Chinese submarines since it produces far less noise, said Russian experts. He believes China will not wage a war against India now even though the Chinese fleet has greater combat power than India's. China considers its fleet as a force against America and does not feel threatened by India.

Indian Navy Wants To Fast-Track Purchase of Russian Subs

The Indian Defence Ministry’s delay in floating a tender for six conventional submarines appears to be helping Russia, as the Indian Navy is now asking the MoD to buy two Russian-built Amur-class subs to help restock the shrinking force.

 

The $12 billion global tender would cover the purchase of six conventional submarines with air independent propulsion (AIP) technology under the Indian Navy’s Project 75-I.

A high-level team from Rosoboronexport was in New Delhi two weeks ago to negotiate the sale or lease of two Amur-class subs, said a source in MoD who gave no details of the deliberations.

The Indian Navy also plans to build six conventional Scorpene submarines under license by DCNS of France at Mumbai-based Mazagon Docks. The delivery of those submarines has been delayed by more than four years. The first of the six submarines will now be inducted into the Navy by 2016 compared with the original delivery date of 2012.

“The delay in Scorpene delivery as well as the delay in [the 75-I] submarine project has led to extreme depletion of [the] submarine arm,” said retired Indian Navy Capt. Shyam Kumar Singh. “The next new submarine will be ready to join the fleet only in 2018. Therefore the earnest need to procure the submarines from Russia.”

Russia leased the nuclear submarine Chakra in 1984, the only country to lease a nuclear submarine to India.

The Indian Navy operates seven Russian-made Kilo-class and four German-made SSK submarines, the last of which joined service in the late 1990s.

In the past year, three Kilo-class submarines were unavailable due to accidents and delays by the state-run shipyard at Vizag.

Though the Navy has asked the MoD to negotiate the purchase of two Amur subs, there is a difference of opinion among service officials about whether to buy Russian or Western-built vessels.

One faction favors the Russian-made AIP submarines, finding them more safe and robust while another group, mostly younger, prefers Western submarines based on a better score in electronics, control and sensors.

“Russian submarines are cheaper to maintain as the Indian Navy has invested heavily in creating relevant infrastructure to support the boats,” a senior Navy officer said. “Besides, there is adequate training on Russian submarines.”

Another officer rebutted: “While the Russian submarines are cheaper to buy initially, their support is expensive and has become an issue with the Indian Navy. While the French and the Western submarines are easier to maintain there are issues of transfer of technology of critical systems.”

While the Navy is facing depleting submarine fleet strength, there is uncertainty over the floating of the $12 billion tender under Project 75-I, now delayed by more than four years. The MoD has not given a reason for the delay in floating the tender.

“The project will not be scrapped,” Singh said. “However, the initial specifications were drawn sometime in 2006-07. It has already been eight years since then. Even if the tender is floated now, it will take at least 10 years for the first submarine to be built at the fastest and [it will be] outdated. The chances are that the specification may be changed. This could be the reason for delay in floating the formal tender.”

The overseas defense shipyards that have shown interest in Project 75-I include DCNS, for its Scorpene with AIP system; HDW of Germany with its Type 214 with Siemens Fuel Cell AIP submarine; Russia with its Amur-class submarine; and Fincantieri of Italy with its S-1000 submarine.

The strength of the Indian Navy submarine fleet has dwindled from a total of 21 vessels in the 1980s to 14. Yet China has more than 60 boats, a point of major concern to the Indian Navy, an official said.