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LONDON — Thales UK has inked a 10-year deal with the British Ministry of Defence to provide in-service support for 17 of the major sensor systems carried onboard Royal Navy submarines and surface warships.
The UK arm of the French-based company said the Sensors Support Optimisation Project (SSOP) deal could be worth up to £600 million (US $906 million) over the period of the contract.
In a statement May 28, the Ministry of Defence said it estimates the new arrangements will save about £140 million over the 10-year period.
A company spokesman said the savings amount to around 18 percent compared with previous contractual arrangements to maintain and repair Royal Navy optronics, electronic warfare and periscope systems.
Thales is the original equipment supplier for sonars, optronics mast and other equipment used by Royal Navy submarines and surface ships, such as the Type 45 destroyer and Type 23 frigate, as well as mine-hunting ships.
Thales has been providing support for Royal Navy sonar systems since 2003 in a contractor logistics support contract. That deal was extended in 2009 to include electronic warfare systems.
Under the SSOP, the arrangement also will include all nuclear submarine visual systems, including periscopes for the Vanguard- and Trafalgar-class boats, and the nonhull-penetrating optronic masts for the new Astute submarines.
The submarine visual systems’ work was previously undertaken by Thales, but under a separate contract.
