Thai Navy picks Hanwha Ocean for 16.73 billion baht frigate

BANGKOK — 18 September 2026, The Royal Thai Navy has selected South Korea’s Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd. to build a high-performance frigate under a 16.73-billion-baht procurement project, saying the selection process was conducted transparently and in accordance with relevant regulations.

At a press conference at the Chao Phraya Room of the Royal Thai Navy Auditorium at 11:00 on Friday, Royal Thai Navy Commander-in-Chief Adm Pairoj Fueangchan and officials responsible for the project announced the result.

Rear Adm Parat Rattanachaiphan, spokesperson for the Royal Thai Navy, said the project aims to procure one high-performance frigate along with onboard systems and equipment, spare parts, tools, documentation, logistical support, testing, training, acceptance procedures, warranties and other related expenses.

The project has a budget ceiling of 17 billion baht.

The procurement forms part of the Navy’s long-term force development plan under its white paper. The new frigate is intended to replace ageing vessels that will gradually be decommissioned and support missions including safeguarding national sovereignty, protecting maritime transportation routes, economic areas, energy resources and critical infrastructure.

The vessel is also expected to support operations against maritime threats both now and in the future.

According to the Navy, the frigate will have capabilities covering three major areas of naval warfare: surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare and air defence. It will also be capable of attacking land targets, countering unmanned aerial vehicles, command and control, data-link operations and joint operations in modern combat environments.

The Navy said operational requirements were determined based on missions, operating areas and potential threats, rather than being tailored to any particular company, manufacturing country, brand or vessel design.

11 firms received bidding documents

The Navy invited 11 shipyards and organisations from several countries with relevant experience to obtain the project’s terms of reference (TOR). Six submitted bids.

The Navy said the TOR had undergone a public consultation and review process, with no complaints from bidders during the TOR preparation stage.

The evaluation criteria were announced in advance. They separated mandatory minimum requirements that all bidders had to meet from areas subject to comparison and scoring.

The criteria covered vessel capabilities, mission readiness, survivability, logistics and technical support, bidder reliability, technology transfer and promotion of Thailand’s defence industry.

The Navy said it did not base its decision solely on the lowest price or the superiority of any individual system. Instead, it evaluated the overall suitability of each vessel, reliability of submitted information, lifetime support, value for money and the benefits to Thailand.

Four bids fail technical requirements

The Navy said there were legal restrictions on disclosing detailed information from individual bids, particularly technical proposals and deficiencies that could constitute protected information.

Releasing such information could affect private companies’ interests, reputations, intellectual property or competitive positions, it said.

However, the Navy said all documents, evidence, reasons and decisions had been recorded throughout the process to allow examination by legally authorised agencies.

During the qualification review, one bidder failed to meet substantive requirements in the TOR because required documents were not submitted, some documents contained significant inaccuracies and certain qualifications did not meet the specified requirements.

Of the remaining bidders, four failed substantive technical requirements. The Navy said the cases included failures to provide documents needed to verify performance and capability, proposals outside the scope of work and conditional proposals that could hinder evaluation or potentially disadvantage the government.

The procurement committee conducted an evidence-based evaluation using the same criteria and standards for all bidders. It considered only documents and evidence submitted within the specified deadline.

The committee unanimously ruled that the four bidders failed the technical criteria, leaving one bidder with a complete and compliant proposal.

The Navy stressed that having only one remaining bidder did not mean the company would automatically be selected. The committee still had to assess technical specifications, price, delivery terms, warranty, lifetime support, technology transfer and overall value.

The Navy retained the right to reject the proposal if it failed to comply with the TOR or was not considered beneficial to the government.

The process was also conducted under an integrity pact, with observers from the Anti-Corruption Cooperation Committee (ACCC) participating in relevant stages to strengthen transparency and public confidence.

Hanwha Ocean selected at 16.73 billion baht

Following the evaluation, the procurement committee selected Hanwha Ocean Co., Ltd. of South Korea.

The company offered a final negotiated price of 16.73 billion baht, which is 270 million baht below the project’s budget ceiling, or approximately 1.6% lower.

The price includes value-added tax, other taxes and duties, transportation, insurance and all related expenses, according to the Navy.

The Navy said negotiations were not focused solely on reducing the price. They also sought to preserve the vessel’s capabilities, quality, technical conditions, warranty and the overall benefits to Thailand.