In picking strategic partners, defence ministry isn't spoilt for choice

The defence ministry has lost sight of what it intends to achieve via the strategic partnership route in manufacturing

Serious drawbacks were highlighted last week in the defence ministry’s so-called Strategic Partner (SP) model of procurement, when five Indian entities submitted Expressions of Interest (EoI) for being the SP in Project 75-I — the plan to build six conventional submarines for an estimated Rs 45,000 crore. There were two responses from the private sector — Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Reliance Naval and Engineering (RNaval). Another two came from defence public sector shipyards — Mazagon Dock Ltd, Mumbai (MDL) and Hindustan Shipyard Ltd, Visakhapatnam (HSL). A fifth response came from a proposed special purpose vehicle (SPV) between HSL and