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Last Updated: Jun 15, 2009 - 7:46:17 AM |
Like car owners, governments insist that somebody take old equipment
off their hands before buying new armaments. Complicated to set up,
such deals nonetheless help suppliers to win contracts. The three
Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) that Germany’s Lurssen yard is about to
deliver to the Royal Brunei Navy were sold in return for the Germans
helping Brunei get rid of three slightly older ships. Brunei initially
contracted Britain’s GEC-Marconi in 1998 to deliver three OPVs. Bought
out by BAE Systems Surface Fleet Solutions, GEC delivered the Nakhoda
Ragam in 2003 and the Bendahara Sakam and Jerambak in 2004. The three
patrol boats were equipped with VL Seawolf and MM40 Exocet Block 2
missiles made by MBDA. But Brunei refused to take delivery of the
vessels on the grounds they didn’t correspond to specifications that
had been negotiated with the British group. Lurssen then stepped in to
offer to take them off Brunei’s hands and re-sell them in return for a
contract with Brunei for a similar number of ships. Through its
affiliate Global Naval Systems, Lurssen offered the British-built
patrol vessels to several Gulf countries but didn’t find buyers.
Finally, it got Algeria to acquire them last year. The proceeds from
the sale of GEC’s ships to Algeria will be partly deducted from the
price of the three new vessels for Brunei.
Like car owners, governments insist that somebody take old equipment
off their hands before buying new armaments. Complicated to set up,
such deals nonetheless help suppliers to win contracts. The three
Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) that Germany’s Lurssen yard is about to
deliver to the Royal Brunei Navy were sold in return for the Germans
helping Brunei get rid of three slightly older ships. Brunei initially
contracted Britain’s GEC-Marconi in 1998 to deliver three OPVs. Bought
out by BAE Systems Surface Fleet Solutions, GEC delivered the Nakhoda
Ragam in 2003 and the Bendahara Sakam and Jerambak in 2004. The three
patrol boats were equipped with VL Seawolf and MM40 Exocet Block 2
missiles made by MBDA. But Brunei refused to take delivery of the
vessels on the grounds they didn’t correspond to specifications that
had been negotiated with the British group. Lurssen then stepped in to
offer to take them off Brunei’s hands and re-sell them in return for a
contract with Brunei for a similar number of ships. Through its
affiliate Global Naval Systems, Lurssen offered the British-built
patrol vessels to several Gulf countries but didn’t find buyers.
Finally, it got Algeria to acquire them last year. The proceeds from
the sale of GEC’s ships to Algeria will be partly deducted from the
price of the three new vessels for Brunei.
Source:Ocnus.net 2009
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