During the course of last week, a delegation from China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) visited Jakarta, Indonesia, once again offering their S26T diesel-electric submarines to the Indonesian government. This model is the same that China previously sought to supply to Thailand’s fleet, a project that faced setbacks due to issues with the supply of German-made MTU engines required for each vessel.
According to the specialized source Janes, the CSSC delegation met with officials from Indonesia’s Ministry of Defense on June 28th. During this meeting, the Chinese visitors presented the qualities of the S26T submarine and discussed potential adaptations to meet the needs of the Indonesian Navy, despite having already undergone a similar process for Thailand with specific specifications.
Acknowledging the challenges related to MTU engine supply that hindered the acquisition by Thailand, Chinese delegates assured the Indonesian Ministry of Defense that they would not encounter the same issues. Essentially, this indicates that CSSC has regained access to engines from the German company and will also provide an option with CHD620 engines locally manufactured by Chinese state-owned enterprises.
To sweeten the deal, CSSC reportedly offered Indonesia’s defense portfolio a version of the S26T capable of deploying YJ-18 anti-ship missiles from its torpedo tubes. This capability adds to the Air-Independent Propulsion (AIP) system already requested by the Thai Navy, with no major adjustments expected to the submarine’s existing design.
It’s worth noting that Thailand had originally planned to invest over $350 million to acquire the Yuan-class S26T submarines, which are the export version of the Type 039A and were initially supposed to feature MTU engines. The contract, signed in 2017, faced repeated delays and challenges primarily due to political constraints imposed by the German government on engine deliveries to China. In May of this year, the project seemed to revive when the Thai Navy announced plans to resume the purchase by replacing German engines with Chinese replacements; however, with these submarines now offered to Indonesia, it appears that Thailand’s operation may have fallen through.
*Images used for illustrative purposes
You may also like: The deployment of the Shandong aircraft carrier strike group of the Chinese Navy in the Philippine Sea continues
