Australia’s new General Purpose Frigate will be the Japanese Mogami, selected over the German TKMS MEKO A-200.
The news was officially announced by Minister for Defence Richard Marles and Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy at Parliament House this morning.
This is a big occasion for both Australia and Japan. It’s the first time Australia has chosen to buy Japanese defence equipment and only the second time Japan is to export major defence equipment to anyone.
Japan did once seek to sell Soryu-class conventionally powered submarines to Australia but lost out to France’s DCNS.
The submarine sales pitch to Australia wasn’t impressive, unlike the effective campaign mounted by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI), backed by the Japanese government, this time round.
Plus a decade ago, Japan had never exported any defence equipment to anyone, let alone technology as a complex as a submarine. Since then, it has sold radar equipment to the Philippines.
Next step will be negotiations between MHI and the Australian government on details such as final pricing and technology transfer, with the aim of concluding a contract by end of the year.
Under Project Sea 3000, Australia is set to acquire 11 General Purpose Frigates, which, with the Hunter-class frigates, will replace the Navy’s ageing Anzac-class frigates.
To speed their entry to service, the first three general purpose frigates will be constructed in MHI’s two yards in Japan, with the rest at the Henderson shipyard in Western Australia.
Four contenders were reduced to two and now one.
Eight Mogamis are currently in service with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, with four more on the way.
The first two were laid down in October 2019 and commissioned in March and April 2022, with other vessels turned out at the rate around two per year, a very significant consideration for Australia which needs warships fast.
FFM is an evolution of the Mogami-class, displacing 6200 tonnes full load, against 5500 tonnes for the Mogami. The first two FFMs are planned for delivery to Japan’s Navy in 2028.
This upgraded Mogami was the basis of MHI’s pitch to Australia.
Other than size, the big change between the two designs relates to armaments with the addition of a 32-cell missile VLS in the FFM foredeck.
Mogami (or FFM) appeared to have sealed the deal through a number of factors. The vessel requires a crew of 90, half that needed to crew one of the Navy’s existing Anzac-class frigates.
Mogami offers significant stealth and also a long life-of-type of 40 years, reducing lifetime ownership costs, offsetting a reported 20 per cent higher pricetag.
Most significantly, new vessels can be delivered sooner, with the first Australian vessel to be commissioned in 2029.
The first of the UK-design Hunter-class frigates won’t enter service until around 2032, by which time the oldest Anzacs will be in their fourth decade.
Japan’s warship pitch was solid. In the final presentation in Canberra last week the head of MHI Seiji Izumisawa presented the big picture, speaking to Australian government and defence officials.
“We now look to strengthen and grow this relationship in the area of defence and space. Japan and Australia are like-minded countries that can contribute greatly to the prosperity of the region and world through greater cooperation in a range of fields,” he said at a reception organised by the Japanese embassy.
“This is becoming more and more important as the global security environment becomes less stable. By harnessing our respective strengths and working together, we can make a positive contribution to stability in the Asia-Pacific region.”
Takeshi Ishikawa, commissioner of the Japanese Defence Ministry's Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency (ATLA), said the Japanese government, ministries including ATLA and defence companies including MHI were working together as one team to sell Mogami to Australia.
“Strengthening the cooperation between us as special strategic partner becomes more and more important to ensure peace and stability,” he said.
As the first three vessels will be built in shipyards in Japan, they will likely feature minimal “Australianisation”, though they still may require some changes to meet Australian occupational health and safety standards.
Subsequent vessels built in Australia may feature greater modification, such as the Australian CEA radar and 9LV combat system.