MDL and TKMS partnership becomes sole bidder for India’s $8 billion P751 contract
A 214 class submarine. TKMS offered an enlarged version in its pitch for the P75I submarine. (Image: TKMS)
The partnership is understood to be the only remaining contender for the contract which could be signed in 2026.
Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd (MDL) and its partner, Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS), have emerged as the sole bidders for the Indian Navy’s (IN) Request for Proposal for a US$8 billion submarine contract.
The Project P75I contract covers the construction of six advanced diesel-electric attack submarines with the Air-Independent Propulsion (AIP) system for MDL-TKMS Type-214. The contract will be signed in 2026, Shephard has learnt.
Alternative bidders Larsen & Toubro (L&T), in partnership with Spanish shipbuilder Navantia, did not pass the IN’s final technical evaluation, as the AIP of the S-80 was not proven in sea trials despite having been demonstrated onshore.
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