It’s Boom Time for Defense Procurement in the Philippines

Defense procurement is set to balloon in the Philippines with contracts worth approximately $2 billion awarded and in the pipeline in the first half of 2014.

Against the backdrop of the Manila’s first-ever defense exhibition, the ASIAN DEFENCE, SECURITY & CRISIS MANAGEMENT EXHIBITION & CONFERENCE (ADAS), July 16-18 2014, Defenseworld.net takes a look at the most recent contracts awarded by the Department of National Defense.

In March, the Philippines signed agreements worth $528 million to purchase military aircraft from South Korea and Canada amid ongoing territorial disputes with China.

Korea Aerospace Industries will deliver 12 FA-50 jets worth $421.12 million in just over three years under a contract agreed by Philippine defence officials and South Korean government representatives.

Manila has also completed a $106 million contract with Canadian Commercial Corp. and Canada's Bell Helicopters to build eight helicopters for the military.

The twin deals are part of the Philippines' $1.6 billion military upgrade programme, particularly units tasked with patrolling disputed territory in the South China Sea.

The Department of National Defense also announced that it has allocated $349 million to fund the acquisition of two brand-new anti-submarine warfare (ASW) helicopters for the Philippine Navy.

In April, Bell Helicopter signed an agreement for eight Bell 412EP helicopters with the DND, which will be fully configured and equipped with advanced features to meet the DND’s modernization requirements.

The DND has accepted motions for reconsideration of two foreign shipbuilding firms that seek to join the bidding for Philippine Navy's frigate program, a Navy official said on May 6 2014.

India's state-owned Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers, Ltd. and STX France, SA from Europe joined the $205 million project to boost the country's maritime forces with new warships, Navy technical working group head Commodore Roland Mercado said in a state news report on Thursday.

Competitors include Navantia Sepi (RTR Ventures), and South Korean contractors STX Offshore and Shipbuilding, Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering Co. Ltd. and Hyundai Heavy Industries, Inc. which have passed the first stage of the bidding process.

Meanwhile, in January, the DND announced it will start the bidding process for its Full Motion Flight Simulator Acquisition Project worth $5.4 million to help the Philippine Air Force (PAF) pilots efficiently operate the T-50 fighter jets.