India UK Sign Agreement on Electric Propulsion System for Indian Navy

India and the United Kingdom have signed a framework agreement for co-designing, co-creating and co-production of Electric Propulsion Systems (engines) for the next generation of Indian Naval ships. The Statement of Intent on Cooperation on Design & Development of Electric Propulsion Systems for the Indian Navy was signed between the Ministries of Defence of India and the United Kingdom in Portsmouth, England, on November 28, 2024. 

The Statement of Intent between the two countries was signed during the third Joint Working Group Meeting of the Electric Propulsion Capability Partnership of India and the United Kingdom in England.

Currently, the Indian Navy uses diesel and gas turbine-based engines for its warships, and for that, it is heavily dependent on Ukraine and, to a certain extent, on the United States. 

The agreement with the United Kingdom is expected to build an ecosystem in India for the development of electric engines for the Indian Navy.

Who will develop the Electric  Propulsion Systems?

The development of Electric Propulsion Systems for the Indian Navy will be done through  a collaboration between the United Kingdom’s GE Power Conversion and Indian government-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL)

The Electric Propulsion Systems jointly developed by BHEL and GE Power Conversion will be tested on landing platform docks to be built in India, and after its successful test, it will be used on the next-generation Indian Naval warships.

Background to the Statement of Intent 

During the visit of the United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson to India in April 2022, both countries announced the establishment of a Joint Working Group on the India -United Kingdom Electric Propulsion Capability Partnership. 

The Joint Working Group's mandate was to further cooperation between the two countries in building Electric Propulsion Systems for use in the maritime sector (Navy).

Subsequently, in April 2022, Bharat Heavy Electrical Limited (BHEL) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the British firm GE Power Conversion for the development of an Integrated Full Electric Propulsion System in India.

The electric propulsion system will power indigenously manufactured Indian Navy’s warships with a displacement of over 6000 tonnes.