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Heinen & Hopman is proud to have been chosen to supply the HVAC for four Tamandaré-class frigates. The Tamandaré class are a new class of future general purpose frigates for the Brazilian Navy, based on the MEKO family of ships.

The vision of Submarine Valley in Den Helder has not been abolished now that the Ministry of Defense has indicated that it does not want the submarines to be outfitted in the 'Nieuwe Haven'. "Certain preparation and maintenance activities can also take place on the Port of Den Helder site, but this will only be in consultation with the Ministry of Defense," says Holger Isbrecht of the German yard thyssenkrupp Marine Systems.

The German shipyard thyssenkrupp Marine Systems offers its services to realize the Regiodeal maritime cluster in the Noordkop. The yard previously unfolded plans for a Submarine Valley in the region. Port alderman Kees Visser is enthusiastic. Visser: "It's good that a potential supplier for submarines sees Den Helder as the location for maintenance. This fits in perfectly with the ambition to strengthen the position of the Royal Netherlands Navy and the maintenance of its fleet in the Kop van Noord-Holland ", says the director.

Phase D of the tender is now in full swing and DMO (Defense Material Organization) is having dialogues with the three shipyards: Naval group, Saab and tkMS. At the beginning of this phase, discussions are held with the shipyards about requirements and designs, among other things. Marineschepen.nl spoke with several sources close to the file about the points of concern, including the extent to which a Military Off The Shelf (MOTS) is possible, as no country buys a submarine from a catalogue. Moreover, the Dutch submarine requires even more changes. Those adjustments have a significant impact on the design. As a result, the submarine is larger than the Walrus class and no supplier has that in the catalogue. The design will therefore have to be composed with different partial solutions. The participants in the tender also acknowledge this.

In a published video, tkMS shows the first images of the 212CD Expeditionary. That is an outline of the proposal that tkMS has in mind in the tender for the replacements of the Walrus class. The video shows a sketch of the exterior, plus images of the German 212A. tkMS indicated the sketch represents technologies and therefore says nothing about the layout. The video gives a good impression of the ideas of tkMS.

The German shipyard thyssenkrupp Marine Systems offers its services to realize the Regiodeal maritime cluster in the Noordkop. The shipyard previously outlined its plans for a Submarine Valley in the region. Harbor alderman Kees Visser responds enthusiastically.

Which company will get the billion euro order for the construction of four new submarines to replace the Walrus class submarines in the Royal Navy? Barbara Visser, State Secretary of Defense, will not be pinned down to a date yet, but indicates in a letter that there is currently an active dialogue with the three candidates. "We want the best product for the best price with the greatest possible involvement of the Dutch industry," Visser writes. She also indicates she will elaborate on the state of affairs on 19 May during Accountability Day. It is not known whether she will also disclose to whom the order will be given, something certain circles around Defense are keen on.

The billion order of the new Walrus generation of submarines can turn the Netherlands into an international tech hub for the submarine industry. If the German thyssenkrupp Marine Systems wins the tender, 2,000 jobs will be created in the coming decades in the naval city of Den Helder.

Three European shipyards are in competition for the billion-dollar order of four new submarines for the Royal Netherlands Navy to replace the Walrus class submarines. If it is up to thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, the new submarines will be outfitted and maintained in the North Holland region. If thyssenkrupp Marine Systems gets the assignment, that would be good news for Den Helder. It is estimated that the development of the 'submarines' will provide 500 direct and 1500 indirect jobs for a long-term period of at least 30 years.

The Dutch Navy is going to choose new submarines. Which partner the Netherlands appoints for the construction of the submarines will have consequences for defense cooperation, technological innovation and employment for years to come. thyssenkrupp Marine Systems has plans to create a Submarine Valley that will boosts the Dutch national and local economy.

There are currently three candidates in the race for the billion-dollar order to build four new submarines for the Dutch Navy. The construction of the submarines requires a refreshment of the current Dutch knowledge and the renewal of maritime training and knowledge sharing are key. This requires international cooperation according to Holger Isbrecht of thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (tkMS), which has the ambition to set up close local partnerships with Dutch maritime industries, knowledge institutes and the local government.

Although little is known about submarine operations, there is little doubt in The Hague that new submarines are needed. According to the Dutch Ministry of Defence, the new submarines will be used to gather intelligence, guard straits and track enemy ships. This makes a submarine one of the most complex systems in the world, not just the boat itself, but also for the engineering, construction and logistics. "Compare it to an Airbus A380 - there are approximately 100,000 parts in an Airbus airplane, but 350,000 in a submarine", says Holger Isbrecht from thyssenkrupp Marine Systems.

Three companies are still in the race to build four submarines for the Dutch Royal Navy. There is a battle going on for the multi-billion euro deal. The German shipyard thyssenkrupp Marine Systems is full of confidence. "We have the submarine that can be delivered on time and that best suits the wishes of the Netherlands," says Holger Isbrecht at the tkMS yard in Kiel.

The tension is rising. The Dutch government has to take a decision about their new submarines. Behind the scenes a real naval battle is raging. Three companies are competing to be selected to build four submarines for over 3.5 billion euros. ... "thyssenkrupp Marine Systems is a safe and reliable choice for the Netherlands," says program manager Holger Isbrecht. "Approximately 70 per cent of the conventional submarines of the NATO countries has been built by us."

A year ago the Defense Industry Strategy (DIS) was published, and since then the course for all potential manufacturers of the new Dutch submarines is clear: a submarine that is as Dutch as possible. By building and maintaining submarines in a 'Submarine Valley' in Den Helder, thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (tkMS) expects to build a submarine that is as 'orange' as possible.

The defense industry is an international market in which billions of euros, dollars and rubles circulate. Stakes are high and choices are difficult. In Den Helder, with the construction of new submarines, that is no different. It will soon become clear who will be awarded the new order for the Dutch government. The multi-billion dollar order for building the new submarines shows similarities with an exciting horse race. Four naval yards compete for the assignment.

In the final minutes of the game, thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (tkMS) has made the Netherlands a revised proposal for submarines. The German company initially offered a type 212CD submarine, which is also used for Germany and Norway. tkMS offers a more flexible design now, plus the use of the technology for the design for the Netherlands.

Until last year, things were looking good for German submarine builder Thyssen Krupp Marine Systems (TKMS). The deal for the manufacturing of four Dutch submarines was as good as done. Kiel was asked to just be patient. But due to changed policy in the Netherlands and new power relations in Germany, the multi-billion euro order seems to be over.

The Netherlands may want to start building submarines again. But examples abroad show this can also fail, says editor Olof van Joolen.

The race for who is allowed to build the successor to the Walrus submarines is entering its decisive phase. Shipbuilders only have weeks left before the Ministry of Defense determines who will move on to the next and decisive round. Both winning the order as well as designating the winner is an extremely complicated job.