Article Posted on : - Mar 10, 2015

An Indian Navy submarine.

NEW DELHI (PTI): The high-level committee of the Defence Ministry, which will identify the shipyards capable of building six conventional submarines under the Navy's P75-I project, is likely to submit its report by this month-end.

"The Committee is likely to submit its report by month-end. No shipyard has been shortlisted," Naval sources said.

India had in October decided to build six submarines at a cost of about Rs 50,000 crore rather than source it from outside.

The government has set-up an eight-member committee to study both public and private shipyards.

The Ministry will issue Request for Proposal (RFP) to specific ports that will be identified on the basis of the study which will look into whether they have the capacity and manpower to build the six submarines in the same port only besides other parameters.

The submarines will be Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) capable that will enable them to stay underwater for longer than a conventional submarine besides having enhanced stealth features.

The Navy currently has 13 operational submarines and the target set in 1999 was to have 24 by 2030.

The previous UPA government had gone in for six Scorpene submarines and the first is likely to be delivered only in 2016.