Spain’s Indra has won the just concluded Tunisian military radar bid. The company will supply medium to long range radars systems according to Tunisia’s requirement.
In 2018, the Tunisian military published a Request for Information (RFI) on radar systems to several international companies, with Turkish Aselsan, US Lockheed Martin, French Thales, Italian Leonardo, and Spanish Indra responding.
The competition saw a controversial plot where Turkish Aselsan attempted to leverage on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan strategic relationship with Tunisia to supply it’s own Kalkan II radar despite falling short of Tunisia’s requirement.
Tunisia’s required the supply and installation of at least a long-range radar system capable of 360 km surveillance capability, two medium-range systems with more than 200 km detection radius, and a command and control centre.
Aselsan Kalkan II radar system is a mobile medium altitude X band phased array 3D search and track air defense radar optimized for point and area defense of important infrastructure.
However, Aselsan lost the bid, and Indra was chosen after competing with the several international companies in the industry. The company has been supplying Civil aviation radars and airport management system to Tunisia since 2010.
“Indra provides integrated 24/7 military and dual-use solutions for communications management and the surveillance, control and defence of air space at all times and flight levels and in all situations,” says Francisco J. Jiménez RodrÃguezAir Defence & Military ATC in Indra.
Despite close ties with Turkey, Tunisian President Kaïs Saïed is keen to show his independence from his Turkish colleague Recep Tayyip Erdogan who wants him to support his war efforts in Libya.
The Tunisian radar contract is part of a larger defence program involving the acquisition of four radars systems (two medium, close and two long-range) worth 40 million euros, and eight training aircraft worth 140 million dollars, a deal worth 72 million dollars for drones, 148 armored cars, 83 military trucks, naval armor, land forces, light military equipment and a project to manufacture armored vehicles and two ships in Tunisia.
