Elbit Athos emerged as L1 bidder when competitive trials were conducted between Elbit Athos and Nexter Trajan.
Elbit's local manufacturing partner is Kalyani.
Nexter's local manufacturing partner is L&T.
If Elbit elbows everybody out, then Kalyani gets to manufacture the gun in India. Either ways its a win-win for Kalyani.
Tata has plenty of pies on its plate so it can give it a pass but the entire arty procurement would cost upwards of $10 billion(conservative 2018-2019 figures).
Why has IA issued an RFI? Have they already zeroed in on a gun?
Elbit emerging as L1 bidder in a previous trial as late as 2019 would not qualify it automatically as L1 because three years have passed since and with Covid thrown into the price matrix, I doubt the offer in 2019 holds good as of today. The whole price negotiations will have to start all over again, Nexter will throw its hat in, DRDO & OFB, MoD will go to town crying foul and we could see a withdrawal of the RFI itself.
Anyway, towed artillery is in the import ban list so the only way Athos gets inducted is by partnering with an Indian entity read Kalyani or someone else. Time will tell.
If people involved in procurement have been following the Ukraine-Russia war, they can't miss 'big is beautiful' in artillery. Hope they don't bury the ATAGS without a fair trial all in the name of gaining geostrategic depth or kickbacks.
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