Poland eyes frigates from Australia, new submarines

WARSAW, Poland — Poland may purchase two Adelaide-class frigates, based on the Oliver Hazard Perry-class vessel, from Australia for its Navy, said Michal Jach, the chairman of the Polish parliament's National Defence Committee.

"The acquisition of used Adelaide frigates from Australia would represent a major upgrade for Poland, it would raise the combat capability of our Navy," Jach said at the Safety Forum 2017 conference in Szczecin, Poland, as reported by local news agency PAP. "These units were modernized and equipped with modern weapons and systems several years ago. After a good negotiation, we will have to pay several hundred million zloty for this. A fully equipped frigate is worth about U.S. $700 million."

The chairman said that the Polish Ministry of National Defence is also expected to decide this year on the supplier of three new submarines for the country's Navy. Three companies have applied to take part in the procurement procedure: France's DCNS, Sweden's Saab and Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems.

"The first submarine will be built in about six years, and its price tag will be around U.S. $500 million," Jach said. 

Last December, the ministry said that, in the years 2017 to 2022, it plans to spend more than 61 billion zloty (U.S. $15.6 billion) on the military modernization program under which new weapons and equipment are to be purchased for the country's armed forces. Upgrading the Polish Navy is one of the program's priority areas, according to the ministry.

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