Royal Thai Navy Selects Hanwha Ocean for Advanced Frigate
South Korea's Hanwha Ocean won Thailand's advanced frigate contract worth 16.73 billion baht, beating three competitors by being the only bidder meeting technical requirements and offering additional benefits including technology transfer f
At 11 a.m. on September 18, Royal Thai Navy Commander Admiral Pairojn Fuangjan and the project management team announced the selection results for the Navy's advanced frigate acquisition project, confirming that all procedures were conducted correctly, transparently, fairly, and verifiably with the highest national and naval interests in mind.
Navy spokesperson Rear Admiral Parach Rattanchaiyaphan revealed that the frigate project is part of the Navy's long-term force development plan outlined in its white paper. The procurement covers one high-performance frigate equipped with systems, spare parts, tools, documentation, training, testing, inspection, warranty, and associated costs, within a budget not exceeding 17 billion baht. The new frigate will have three-dimensional combat capabilities including surface warfare, anti-submarine operations, air defense, coastal strike, anti-drone operations, command and control, data integration, and modern naval operations.
The procurement committee reviewed all four bidders using evidence-based evaluation criteria applied uniformly to each proposal. Three proposals failed technical requirements, leaving only Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd. from South Korea with a complete and compliant submission. After comprehensive assessment, the committee selected Hanwha Ocean, which negotiated a final price of 16.73 billion baht—270 million baht below budget, or 1.6 percent lower—including all taxes, shipping, insurance, and related expenses.
The negotiations maintained full capabilities, quality, technical conditions, warranty, and benefits to Thailand. Hanwha Ocean confirmed its final proposal with additional benefits including a coastal patrol vessel design for knowledge transfer supporting domestic shipbuilding development, an Unmanned Surface Vehicle design to enhance surveillance and modern naval operations, and rights to access and develop tactical data link and Combat Management System technologies.
These rights are critical to reducing foreign dependency and enabling the Navy to adapt systems to Thai requirements in the future while supporting the Thai defense industry and personnel. The Navy established economic and industrial benefit policies as part of the procurement terms, emphasizing investment in Thailand, research and development, and technology transfer.
