INS Chakra/Akula II

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India, Russia to ink $3 billion nuclear submarine deal this week
Akula class attack submarine Chakra III to be on 10-year lease, likely to join by 2025.
By Manu Pubby, ET Bureau | Updated: Mar 04, 2019, 08.15 AM IST
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    The Akula submarines are considered to be next only to newer US nuclear submarines when it comes to stealth and attack capabilities.

    NEW DELHI: India is set to sign a $3-billion deal with Russia this week to lease another nuclear attack submarine that will be customised and fitted with indigenous communications systems and sensors.

    The deal for the Akula class submarine— dubbed Chakra III after the first two similar vessels India obtained from Russia — will be the biggest signed with Moscow since the $5.5-billion contract for the S-400 air defence system was finalised last year.

    Sources told ET that the intergovernmental agreement for the submarine lease is likely to be inked on March 7 and that the vessel will be ready by 2025 after an extensive building programme on mothballed hulls at a Russian shipyard



    CHAKRA II LEASE MAY BE EXTENDED
    The Chakra III will be in service for at least 10 years and will replace the Chakra II that was obtained under similar conditions in 2012. It is believed that the lease of the Chakra II, which is to expire in 2022, could be extended for a fiveyear period till the new vessel gets built and tested.





    Operating a nuclear attack submarine or SSN — it’s powered by a nuclear reactor but armed with conventional weapons — gives India significant strike capability in the region. These vessels can remain underwater for months, making them almost impossible to detect and are a big deterrence for enemy vessels in the region.


    While the mothballed nuclear submarine had been shipped to the Russian port town of Severodvinsk in 2014, sources said that it will be akin to a new vessel once ready, given the extent of work required to make it operational.

    The work requires a complete build-up and activation of the nuclear reactor that powers it and the fitment of a large number of unspecified Indian original systems for communication and domain area awareness.

    Indian personnel involved in the project are likely to get significant expertise on working on such submarines that will come in handy for the indigenous nuclear attack submarine programme that has been approved. Design work on a new class of Indian SSNs has commenced but there is no clarity about when it will be completed. The build process started at a domestic shipyard.

    Talks on the Chakra III lease have been on since 2013 but were given a boost in 2015 when both sides initiated technical and price discussions to specify what will go into the inter-governmental agreement.

    This will be the third Russian nuclear submarine to be operated by India, starting from 1988 when the original INS Chakra was taken on a three-year lease. The second was inducted in 2012 after a prolonged refit that saw a time delay. The Akula submarines are considered to be next only to newer US nuclear submarines when it comes to stealth and attack capabilities.
 

Armand2REP

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I don't see why India wants to pay $3 billion to renovate an outdated hull that has been rusting in the salty Arctic wastelands for the last 30 years. For a 10 year lease on that you can build and maintain two of your own.
 

Gessler

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I don't see why India wants to pay $3 billion to renovate an outdated hull that has been rusting in the salty Arctic wastelands for the last 30 years. For a 10 year lease on that you can build and maintain two of your own.
A few possible reasons...

1) The lease will be extended, so there's more value

2) There's more to the deal than just the lease. Assistance for the home-grown SSN project could be paid for by such deals.

3) It's not like we have a choice. Other than Russia, who else has an SSN they're willing to lease out?
 

Armand2REP

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A few possible reasons...

1) The lease will be extended, so there's more value

2) There's more to the deal than just the lease. Assistance for the home-grown SSN project could be paid for by such deals.

3) It's not like we have a choice. Other than Russia, who else has an SSN they're willing to lease out?
1) What else is Russia going to do with the former Nerpa? It is in need of a refit which they can't afford to do buying a new class of attack subs.

2) India wants an SSN that they can test and prove indigenous subsystems, but it is better to just build your own which India has more than proven they can for less money and full ownership.

3) Of course you have a choice, build your own. The subsystems of the Scorpene are more advanced than Soviet era subsystems if you need experience with the best.
 

garg_bharat

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Let us not assume that Akula is being leased to build "experience". Akula represents a capability that India does not have and not going to have in near future as well. I think an SSN is needed to complement aircraft carrier; specially if carrier has to move out of protected waters.

Yes building own SSN is better but focus is on completing SSBN Arihant program (series of five). Arihant is part of India's deterrence capability whereas SSN and AC is for force projection.
 

Armand2REP

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Let us not assume that Akula is being leased to build "experience". Akula represents a capability that India does not have and not going to have in near future as well. I think an SSN is needed to complement aircraft carrier; specially if carrier has to move out of protected waters.

Yes building own SSN is better but focus is on completing SSBN Arihant program (series of five). Arihant is part of India's deterrence capability whereas SSN and AC is for force projection.
There is no reason one of those Arihant couldn't be converted to an SSGN and act as a carrier escort. India is finally indigenous in the capability but they are still wasting money leasing submarines they can build themselves and frigates they can build better. It is a welfare programme supporting Russian shipyards.
 

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There is no reason one of those Arihant couldn't be converted to an SSGN and act as a carrier escort. India is finally indigenous in the capability but they are still wasting money leasing submarines they can build themselves and frigates they can build better. It is a welfare programme supporting Russian shipyards.
India definitely needs help with the reactor. The Arihant rector is too underpowered for an SSN. The IN was after the LEU reactor of the French Baracuda. But looks like the French are still having problems with it. Not sure they would share that tech though. That leaves the Russians.
 

lcafanboy

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India definitely needs help with the reactor. The Arihant rector is too underpowered for an SSN. The IN was after the LEU reactor of the French Baracuda. But looks like the French are still having problems with it. Not sure they would share that tech though. That leaves the Russians.
No we are self sufficient as far as reactors is concerned. We have got 150mw naval reactor and are working on 190mw reactor too... Who told you ins Arihant is under powered? It does 30knots which is very good for a ssbn, if it's under powered how does it do 30knots?

We are definitely interested in French Baracuda reactor as it uses low enriched uranium same as civilian reactors. This will free up HEU and free us from sanctions too.....
 
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Armand2REP

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India definitely needs help with the reactor. The Arihant rector is too underpowered for an SSN. The IN was after the LEU reactor of the French Baracuda. But looks like the French are still having problems with it. Not sure they would share that tech though. That leaves the Russians.
The only problem with the Barracuda reactor was it was too tall and had to be miniaturised. The Arihant is more than tall enough to accept reactors currently in service. We didn't want to repeat the mistakes of the Astute class that has a powerful reactor but a gearbox that can only get it up to 2/3rds speed.
 

Nick Diniz

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No we are self sufficient as far as reactors is concerned. We have got 150mw naval reactor and are working on 190mw reactor too... Who told you ins Arihant is under powered? It does 30knots which is very good for a ssbn, if it's under powered how does it do 30knots?

We are definitely interested in French Baracuda reactor as it uses low enriched uranium same as civilian reactors. This will free up HEU and free us from sanctions too.....
Underpowered for an SSN I ment. Do we have a 150 mw naval reactor? The Charles De Gaulle uses two 150 MW reactors but there were reports that the IN decided against nuclear propulsion for IAC-2 as BARC said they would need 15 years to develop a reactor.
 

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