Breaking Defense: “Defence continues to enhance the size and lethality of Navy’s surface combatant fleet, as directed by Government in February 2024, and is progressing the acquisition of Australia’s general purpose frigate by engaging with exemplar platform nations and tenderers,” an Australian DoD spokesman told Breaking Defense.

The Labor government reportedly has made its first major decision in the $10 billion AUD ($6.6 billion USD) competition to build 11 frigates, picking a German and a Japanese company in the down-select process.

Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) and Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) are through the first gate, leaving South Korea’s Hanwha Ocean and Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Spain’s Navantia in the cold, according to news reports. A spokesperson for the Australian Department of Defence declined to comment on the reported down-select, but told Breaking Defense the department “continues to enhance the size and lethality of Navy’s surface combatant fleet, as directed by Government in February 2024, and is progressing the acquisition of Australia’s general purpose frigate by engaging with exemplar platform nations and tenderer.” The narrowing of the competition was first reported by the Australian Financial Review last week. The government has directed the companies not to discuss the program with the press.

The General Purpose Frigate program (Sea3000) was created as a result of recommendations in the Defense Strategic Review. To some Australian observers, the German offering is the most favoured because the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) is familiar with German shipbuilders and its MEKO A-200 ships have a modular design, allowing integration of Australia’s CEA radars and SAAB’s 9LV combat management system, which is used on many Australian naval platforms including the ANZAC and Canberra classes. The existing ANZAC class fleet of nine is comprised of older MEKO designs.

Meko A-200

Mogami 30FFM

Meanwhile, the Mitsubishi Mogami 30FFM has an excellent reputation in many quarters, but Japan has never exported a major combat system of this complexity.

In a rare disclosure relating to Sea3000, RAN chief Vice Adm. Mark Hammond said in August that “base crews of 90 to 100” are set to staff the future ships, or 120 personnel when helicopters are deployed.

The first three ships will be built in the foreign yard of the winner and the rest of the fleet will be built in the Henderson shipyards in Western Australia. The fourth ship may be built in the foreign yard, depending on how ready Henderson is at the time. The first one is meant to be delivered in 2029.