The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) is expected to pursue a negotiated contract to select a contractor for the Korea Destroyer neXt generation (KDDX), which has been delayed for more than a year.
According to the defense industry on the 12th, DAPA decided to submit an agenda to the project subcommittee on the 18th concerning the decision on the business method for the KDDX detailed design and construction of the lead ship (ship No. 1). DAPA is said to have chosen a negotiated contract method in consideration of continuity and expertise in the warship program, legal review, and collection of opinions from subcommittee members.
Following the subcommittee, DAPA plans to hold a Defense Acquisition Program Promotion Committee meeting on the 30th to finalize the decision on the business method. A DAPA official said, "Nothing has been decided regarding the business method yet," and noted, "It will be decided at the Promotion Committee."
KDDX is a program to invest 7.8 trillion won to build six 6,000-ton (t)-class domestic EGIS destroyers by 2030. Hanwha Ocean handled the concept design, and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries handled the basic design, which was completed in Dec. 2023. HD Hyundai Heavy Industries maintains that, in line with the practice of awarding the detailed design to the company that performed the basic design, a negotiated contract should be used, while Hanwha Ocean argues that competitive bidding is necessary, citing HD Hyundai Heavy Industries' criminal conviction for stealing military secrets.
Originally, after the basic design was completed in Dec. 2023, the project to begin the detailed design and construction of the lead ship was scheduled to start 4th year, but legal disputes and overheated competition between HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and Hanwha Ocean delayed the program by more than a year.