“Their acquisition process makes an arthritic snail look like Seabiscuit. “
I’ve noticed that. My guess is it’s a process intended to solicit bribes. On the other hand, are the Brits still building diesel boats? They had some good ones and BAE owns a huge chunk of Mahindra. (Mahindra is India’s GE.) If they gave the electronics and subsystems to Mahindra they could probably get the contract in record time.
The BAE-Mahindra JV is dead.
http://www.stratpost.com/bae-systems-quits-dlsi-jv-with-mahindra
BAE Systems never owned any stakes in Mahindra, which is predominantly a civilian industry player. Foreign investment in Indian defense ventures is still heavily restricted and is mostly limited to JVs as opposed to full-scale stakes and ownership.
About getting a contract in record time, tough chance for a company with zero maritime pedigree and assets. Their JV was to manufacture land vehicles. L&T and Pipavav are the main private shipbuilders in India.