Lockheed Martin, Daewoo partner for combat ships

SEOUL, May 2 (UPI) -- Lockheed Martin and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering have partnered to produce a multi-mission combat ship based on a DSME hull design.

The vessels will be corvettes, which will be offered to the South Korean Navy and international customers.

"DSME's MCS hull design, coupled with Lockheed Martin's expertise in program and systems integration, will allow the team to bring this capable ship to the international marketplace at an affordable price," said Joe North, vice president of Littoral Ships and Systems at Lockheed Martin Mission System and Training. "Together, we bring not only the best experience, expertise and resources, but also the right dedication and focus to offer coalition navies a multi-mission corvette-sized ship designed to meet future threats."

"This Teaming Agreement on MCS and strategic cooperation will not only provide our customers with high capability vessels on time, but also further facilitate our two companies' joint efforts in exploring opportunities on a global scale," said Deog-Soo Kim, vice president and the head of the Naval & Special Ship Business Management Division at DSME.

"Moreover, the Korean government is pursuing 'New-Economic Growth Activation by Defense Industry' as one of the state development agendas and this agreement is a good example of achieving the objective."

Additional details of the comprehensive partnering agreement and projected vessel production were not disclosed.