Bengaluru: Three years after the Indian government picked France’s Dassault Aviation to supply 126 of its Rafale fighters to the Indian Air Force and countless rounds of negotiations over the final contract, it’s still all tunnel and no light at the end of it. While Dassault has been tightlipped about what’s causing the delay, Indian officials have from time to time let it be known that price and guarantees are holding the deal up.
Now, this newspaper has learnt that the “cost escalation” maybe as much due to an Indian “self-goal” as to the French trying to milk the deal for all it’s worth after having quoted the lowest price among six competitors.
The original Indian Request for Proposal (RFP) for the IAF’s Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) contract did not take into account over 60 items, the costs of which added up as contract negotiations proceeded, knowledgeable sources who have observed the origins and the trajectory of the told this newspaper. The MMRCA contract is the first time the defence ministry is attempting to do life-cycle costing for a large acquisition, in addition to writing in the costs for technology transfer and working in offsets. Given the complexity, that exercise has been botched up, the sources said.
19/02/15 Asian Age
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Now, this newspaper has learnt that the “cost escalation” maybe as much due to an Indian “self-goal” as to the French trying to milk the deal for all it’s worth after having quoted the lowest price among six competitors.
The original Indian Request for Proposal (RFP) for the IAF’s Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) contract did not take into account over 60 items, the costs of which added up as contract negotiations proceeded, knowledgeable sources who have observed the origins and the trajectory of the told this newspaper. The MMRCA contract is the first time the defence ministry is attempting to do life-cycle costing for a large acquisition, in addition to writing in the costs for technology transfer and working in offsets. Given the complexity, that exercise has been botched up, the sources said.
19/02/15 Asian Age
