Dutch naval engineering firm Nevesbu has presented its concept design for the refurbishment of the Indonesian Navy’s (TNI AL) Damen-built SIGMA 9113/Diponegoro-class corvettes.
According to Nevesbu, the company developed the Platform System Integration (PSI) concept for the programme’s extensive Sensor, Weapon, and Command (SEWACO) package in just three months.
The company said Indonesian stakeholders, namely Ministry of Defence, TNI AL, and state-owned PT Len Industri, received the concept positively and provided constructive feedback to support the next stage of development, which will focus on a full-scale design solution.
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The announcement follows a modernisation contract signed by Thales and PT Len Industri in November 2022 covering all four Diponegoro-class corvettes. The five-year programme includes a new TACTICOS Combat Management System and upgraded sensors.
The concept image published by Nevesbu, depicting the class lead ship KRI Diponegoro (365), provides further indications of what some of those sensor upgrades could look like.
The rendering appears to show a Thales STIR 1.2 EO Mk2 medium-range tracking and fire-control radar replacing the class’s existing Thales Lightweight Radar/Optronic Director (LIROD). It also appears to feature what could be the Thales NS50 I-band 4D surveillance radar in place of the ships’ current Thales MW08 radar.
However, the concept image does not indicate any major changes to the Diponegoro class’s existing weapon fit.
The refurbishment would add another Indonesian Navy modernisation programme to Nevesbu’s portfolio.
As previously reported by Naval News, Nevesbu is also involved in the ongoing modernisation of the Indonesian Navy’s Bung Tomo-class light frigates/corvettes, another programme led by PT Len Industri with Thales Netherlands acting as combat system integrator. Nevesbu serves as platform systems integrator for that programme, covering surveys, design and engineering work, as well as on-site support during construction.
If the refurbishment proceeds, the work will likely take place in Surabaya, East Java, where all four Diponegoro-class corvettes are homeported and where the ongoing Bung Tomo-class modernisation is also being carried out.
