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For the latest on this issue see June 11, 2014’s Australia's Future Submarine - Swedish vs German Claims http://gentleseas.blogspot.com.au/2014/06/australias-future-submarine-swedish-vs.html . It is unclear whether Germany or Sweden hold the strongest intellectual property rights to the Stirling AIP.
The current corporate confrontation between SAAB and TKMS underlines the need for Australia future submarine project (SEA 1000) to be (reasonably) technically self reliant and flexible enough to tolerate changes in the threat-strategic environment, corporate and broader international economic environment. Australia needs as much autonomy as possible in intellectual property, spare parts and test facilities.
Connect the current escalation in corporate conflict between SAAB
and TKMS over Kockums with:
- Kockums loss of its traditional Singapore customer to HDW – see Singapore Buying Two HDW 218SG Submarines –
Sweden’s Loss of December 3, 2013http://gentleseas.blogspot.com.au/2013/12/singapore-buying-two-hdw-218sg.html , and
- German’s Sinking Kockum’s
Swedish Sub-Maker of November 13, 2013 http://gentleseas.blogspot.com.au/2013/11/germans-sinking-kockums-swedish-sub.html .
ARTICLE
Birgitta Forsberg of affars Valdern (translated from Swedish) of March 12, 2014 reports http://www.affarsvarlden.se/hem/nyheter/article3811470.ece :
"Thyssen Krupp ask FMV stop Saab"
"Kockums German owners ThyssenKrupp ask FMV stopping Saab
from recruiting top people from Kockums.
n a letter to Lena Erixon, Director General for Defence Materiel
Administration, [known as] FMV, asking the head of the German Thyssen Krupp Marine
Division, Dr. Hans Atzpodien FMV stopping Saab from recruiting key personnel
from Kockums.
Thyssen Krupp wholly owns Kockums but has for years thwarted Kockums
from exporting submarines because the Germans also owns the German shipyard HDW
where they would rather control the business. Recently, FMV enough of the
Germans' delaying tactics when it came to ordering a Swedish Kockums and
instead asked Saab to do a feasibility study on Sweden's future submarines.As a
result of the Saab has recently recruited top people from Kockums and also went
yesterday, Tuesday, issued a press release that the company seeking employees
for its shipping division.
The letter writing Atzpodien addition to the Thyssen-Krupp
§ - will support the
export of the planned Swedish submarine A26
§ - is willing to
negotiate a contract to sell the A26 to Sweden
§ - is willing to offer
Swedish authorities influence at board level in Kockums or at least greater
transparency in company
§ - want to invest in to
let Kockums produce a small submarine (up to thousand tons)
§ is willing to develop
Kockums
§ - wants Kockums and HDW
cooperate closer without infringing on the patents FMV own
His Atzpodien and Lena Erixon has a meeting scheduled for 18 March and
it's ahead of the meeting that Atzpodien written the letter.
But the offer of influence has come before, and that the Germans want
the Swedes to focus on small submarines, while the German shipyard HDW may take
the major orders, are also known. According to a source, who sees the
whole thing as a way to get Kockums out of the way as a competitor, there is no
bigger market for small submarines. In other words, it is doubtful whether
FMV soothed by letter.
The whole thing is complicated by other agreements between
Kockums and FMV, including for servicing submarines." ENDS
--------------------------
COMMENT
COMMENT
Joakim Wohlfeil on March 14, 2014 sent the following comment to Australia by the Indian Ocean:
"Breaking news update ;-) The Submarine war between Sweden
and Germany escalates !!
SAAB has succeeded to recruit the full technical management
team at Kockum, including the manager for the submarine division Per Nilsson
and are now actively seeking to recruit the remaining ca. 230 engineers.
(http://www.affarsvarlden.se/hem/nyheter/article3811470.ece ["Thyssen Krupp ask FMV stop Saab" see above].
According to local press in Malmö the engineers being feed
up with ThyssenKrupp are joining SAAB en masse. As the Swedish government are
the formal owners of the construction patent and drawings of all Swedish
submarines SAAB could actually perform a hostile take-over without paying
anything to ThyssenKrupp. (and this seems to happened with the blessing of the
Swedish government).
2 days ago, ThyssenKrupp formally protested to the Swedish
government ([the Defence Materiel Administration known as] FMV) and demanded they should stop
SAAB´s hostile recruitment campaign.
In return Thyssen Krupp has offered.
- ThyssenKrupp will not block the procurement process of A26
and approve that it will be built in Sweden
- Thyssen Krupp will allow Kockums to market A26 for export
(however it´s not said if the condition that HDW can see and approve Kockums
export offerings will be lifted)
- Repeating the offer Sweden besides of A26 will be the new
centre for small submarines (an offer that has earlier been rejected by Kockums
employees and the Swedish government).
However, if Sweden suddenly seems to sit on the upside,
ThyssenKrupp can answer with obstructing the upgrades and service of Swedish
naval crafts that is contracted to the still ThyssenKrupp owned Kockums
industriers (TKMD)"
Pete
