Main headlines from this issue

Korea clarifies policy on civil offsets

Korea’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) has confirmed that the Request for Proposal (RFP) for government procurements does not require mandatory export commitments. However, there is a higher chance of approval of the agreement if the foreign company proposes an item that can lead to exports.

Foreign firms complete only 82 percent of Indian offsets

Foreign suppliers have long struggled to navigate India’s bureaucratic hurdles and perform their offset obligations. Indian Minister of Defence Ajay Bhatt was challenged on the subject during a hearing at Lok Sabha, the Parliament of India, on 5 August.

UK consortium finalises bid for support ship contract

In its search for three new Fleet Solid Support Ships (FSS), the British government is facing a decision between an all-British vessel and an offset-heavy foreign proposal. Team UK, composed of Babcock and BAE Systems, has submitted a bid to supply the ships using only UK-based industry. It faces competition from Team Resolute, composed of Spanish prime Navantia, UK shipbuilder Harland and Wolff (H&W), and British design consultancy BMT.

Details emerge of Poland’s IBCS offset contracts

Despite protracted negotiations and licensing struggles, Northrop Grumman’s cooperation with Polish industry on Integrated Battle Command System (IBCS) modules is now fully underway. Northrop’s technology transfer efforts focus predominantly on systems engineering and software development, especially for system-of-systems engineering and network-centric architectures.

Baykar to build drone facility in Ukraine

Turkish drone manufacturer Baykar is taking steps to build a factory on Ukrainian soil, according to Vasyl Bodnar, Ukraine’s ambassador to Turkey. Baykar has already created a company in Ukraine, bought a plot of land at an undisclosed location, and started developing the facility.