MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Venezuela plans to purchase two new submarines

The Venezuelan navy announced Wednesday its interest in purchasing three of the latest diesel-electric submarines in the world market which will eventually replace its two aging German-made Type 209 subs.

The purchase will have to be a government-to-government operation and the list of potential suppliers includes Germany, China, South Korea, France, Spain and Russia.

Navy Commander in Chief Vice Admiral Armando Laguna said that the German model has the inside track because "we're seeking to keep the same 209 sub line, and so we're thinking in the possibility of the new version", which is Type 212/214.

The operation under consideration begins "in 2007", following the Navy's "scheduled strategic development plan".

"We will purchase the best model, the one that offers the best transfer of technology and the best training conditions for our personnel" stressed V/Admiral Laguna.

The navy chief pointed out that the state of the art submarines will be "conventional" vessels, not nuclear-powered, but did not reveal if they included the "Air Independent Propulsion" system that allows some models to remain submerged for up to 30 days.

Besides the German Type 212/214, other models preferred by the Venezuelan Navy because of their technology include Russian Amur and Franco-Spanish Scorpene model, similar to those recently acquired by Chile.

Venezuela has two submarines on service, Type 209, which are currently undergoing a refurbishing process with the purpose of extending their life service another ten years.