Russia partners Reliance Group to build warships

New Delhi: Russia will partner with Anil Ambani-led Pipavav Defence, to build Grigorivich ships under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” initiative, official sources said.

The ships will be upgraded versions of Talwar-class ships, or the Russian equivalent of Krivak-III.

A team from Russia evaluated three-four private and state-run shipyards, as they were keen on an Indian partner, if the ships were to be built in India. This will be a pre-condition for the order valued at USD 3- 3.5 billion, two senior defence officials confirmed.

The sites evaluated were Pipavav’s yard in Gujarat, Larsen and Toubro’s unit at Ennore, and the state-run Cochin Shipyard in Kerala. Pipavav, a majority stake of which was acquired by the Reliance Group a few months ago, emerged the winner.

Incidentally, the development comes against the backdrop of the navy vice chief, Vice Admiral P. Murugesan, stating on Tuesday that India was exploring the possibility of getting upgraded Talwar-class ships.

India stressed on domestic defence production under the “Make in India” program, an important aspect of which is to get technology transfers and inviting foreign firms to manufacture in India.

The Grigorivichs are improved variants of the six Talwar-class frigates, which the navy obtained between 2003 and 2013.

In March, the Reliance Group had announced its acquisition of an 18-percent stake from the then promoters of Pipavav Defence, apart from a 26-percent mandatory open offer.