Arun Jaitley to review Scorpene submarine project in Mumbai today

Mumbai: Defence Minister Arun Jaitley will on Monday review Scorpene submarine project here.

The six Scorpenes are being constructed at the Mazagon Dockyards Limited (MDL) in Mumbai under Project-75 under technology transfer from French firm DCNS.

The first of the six Scorpene submarines ordered by the Indian Navy from DCNS in 2005, as part of the technology transfer between the two countries, will be rolled out by 2014.

The government approval for construction of the six submarines was accorded in September 2005 at a total cost of Rs 18,798 crore and the contract was signed in October that year.

The project cost was revised to Rs 23,562 crore in February 2010, along with revision in delivery schedule.

Designed for coastal defence against under-water threats, the 1,750-tonne submarine-submarine-killer (SSK) Scorpene is 67 metres in length and can dive to a depth of 300 metres. According to French naval officials, the submarine can stay at sea for 45 days with a crew of 31.

The standard version has six torpedo tubes and anti-shipping missile launchers.

(With PTI inputs)