The rise of a great power: starting with military industry

Chapter 516 Super Big Contract (asking for monthly ticket)
Compared with other missile boats, torpedo boats, minesweepers and frigates, the Type 052 destroyer is obviously a behemoth!
The displacement is 7000 tons, this is a steel behemoth!
When you look at any warship on CCTV or Chinese media, you don’t feel anything, it’s as if they are just fishing boats.

But anyone standing in front of it will be shocked by the powerful combat capability and powerful deterrent power possessed by this steel behemoth!

If you don't believe it, take a look at the photos taken by AFP and then compare them with those taken by Chinese media, and you will see the difference between the two.

Liu Tao introduced: "The Type 052 destroyer is 157 meters long, 19 meters wide, 6 meters deep, has a standard displacement of 6300 tons, a full load displacement of 7500 tons, a maximum speed of 30 knots, and a cruising range of 4200 nautical miles/20 knots."

"The power system adopts diesel-fuel combined power, which mainly consists of 2 gas turbines and 2 diesel engines. The gas turbine has an operating power of 2×67000 horsepower and the diesel engine has an operating power of 2×10420 horsepower. It adopts dual-shaft dual-propeller (variable pitch) dual rudders, has a crew of 280 people, and a standard self-sustaining capacity of 15 days."

“武器系统方面，主要武器有1座单管130mm舰炮，1座7管30mm近迫武器系统，1座24单元近程舰空防御系统、1座4单元中程舰空防御系统、8座八联装冷热共架综合垂直发射系统，2座三联装324mm鱼雷发射器，4座18管多用途发射器。”刘韬介绍武器系统：“垂直发射系统，8座八联装垂直发射系统，每个系统配备有8个发射单元，装备64枚导弹.”

Liu Tao gave a very detailed introduction and even took Prince Sultan on board to show him the 130mm naval gun and the 7-barrel 30mm close-in weapon system.

Then take a look at the 24 units of short-range ship-to-air defense system and the 4 units of medium-range ship-to-air defense system.

Let’s take a look at the eight eight-unit cold and hot co-mounted integrated vertical launch systems.

Prince Sultan has already clearly felt the powerful combat capability of this destroyer.

Look at the eight eight-unit vertical launch systems. Each system is equipped with eight launch units and 8 missiles. This means that in a very short time, 8 missiles can be launched. The power generated will be amazing.

Powerful air defense capability, powerful attack capability!
The more he thought about it, the more shocked Prince Sultan became.

Prince Sultan couldn't help but gasp.

When the destroyer left the naval port, Prince Sultan personally looked around the command and operations room, the cafeteria, and the soldiers' living quarters. He believed that Saudi naval officers and soldiers would definitely like this destroyer.

On the deck, facing the sea breeze, Prince Sultan could not wait to inquire about the price of the Type 052 destroyer.

Liu Tao quoted a price - US$15 billion!
This price is undoubtedly a sky-high price!
The British built the Invincible aircraft carrier at a cost of 1.85 million pounds, plus weapons systems and so on, the total cost was about 3.5 to 4 million pounds, which was about 10 billion U.S. dollars at the exchange rate at the time. Taking into account the depreciation of the U.S. dollar, it is roughly equivalent to about 20 to 30 billion U.S. dollars today.

The Soviet Union's recently launched Kuznetsov aircraft carrier is said to cost $35 billion.

The USS Roosevelt, the aircraft carrier that just entered service in the United States, cost $45 billion!
The price of a destroyer is as high as 15 billion US dollars, which is indeed very high.

But this only shows how much the US dollar has depreciated in recent years.

Now in the international arms market, prices are rising every month because the US dollar continues to depreciate.

Compared with the US Ticonderoga-class cruiser, the cost has exceeded 10 billion US dollars, far exceeding the initial budget price.

Moreover, the export price of warships is high.

Even though he was mentally prepared, Prince Sultan still couldn't help but gasp when he heard the price.

But he didn't say much.

"Six, we Saudi Arabia want six of this type of destroyers!" said Prince Sultan.

Liu Tao couldn't help but feel secretly happy, 6 ships would cost 90 billion US dollars.

Over the next day or so, the two parties negotiated matters related to the contract agreement, including delivery time, technical services, training services, etc.

When purchasing warships, of course, they would not just purchase a single warship or a basic number of artillery shells, missiles, and torpedoes. They would purchase more so that there would be enough in case of a war.

In addition, there are related technical services and training services, such as Saudi Arabia sending personnel to learn and familiarize themselves in advance, and then directly drive the warships back. The total contract is as high as 160 billion US dollars, of which the purchase of warships including a base number of missiles, shells, and torpedoes is 143 billion US dollars, and other services are worth 17 billion US dollars.

Afterwards, they set off for the capital.

In a few days, King Fahd of Saudi Arabia will visit China, and they need to get everything done before then.

After all, when the king visits China, he naturally won’t discuss the details, as everything has already been agreed upon in advance.

After arriving in Beijing, Prince Sultan and others were arranged to stay at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse.

Liu Tao did not even take a rest and went to report to his leader in person.

After all, this is a super contract worth 160 billion US dollars, which can be said to be the largest single contract obtained by China so far.

Naturally, he needs to report such a big thing to his superiors.

He first went to the China North Industries Corporation, and without saying much, took the two leaders to the leader's office.

After waiting for an hour, the secretary informed them and asked them to go to the office.

The office is very simple, not luxurious at all.

The old man was drinking water, and his face looked a little tired.

Obviously he was a little tired after dealing with something.

This 82-year-old man is still working tirelessly for national affairs, using his foresight, determination and courage to promote the country's progress and development.

Now he was just wearing a white shirt, which didn't look like a high-end product.

"You said you had good news to report. Tell me, what good news?" The old man put the enamel cup in his hand on the table and smiled kindly.

Liu Tao said: "A super contract worth 160 billion US dollars, is that good news?"

"A super contract of 160 billion US dollars? You went to rob? " the old man asked in surprise.

Liu Tao reported everything he had discussed with Prince Sultan.

The two leaders of the China North Industries Corporation were extremely shocked. They had not expected that Liu Tao had managed to negotiate such a big deal without making any noise. This was truly a huge contract.

The old man said, "You have given me a big surprise! Good, very good! With such a large sum of money, a lot of work can be done, and I don't have to worry about your Panshan Group spreading its stall so big that the capital chain will be broken!"

As Panshan Group has expanded its business to such a large scale, the higher-ups are actually somewhat concerned. They are worried that Panshan Group may not be able to keep up with the funding, or even that its capital chain may break.

To this end, the worst-case scenario has been prepared, which is for banks to provide large loans to Panshan Group.

It is impossible for the country to really watch Panshan Group go bankrupt, because Panshan Group has high-quality assets, provides a large number of jobs, and has made great contributions to national development.

But no one expected that Panshan Group would make more and more money every year. They thought Panshan Group had reached its peak two years ago, but last year's revenue and tax payments hit new highs.

At the beginning of the year, they thought Panshan Group had reached its peak, but who could have imagined that two consecutive super contracts this year would allow Panshan Group to surpass last year without a doubt.

(End of this chapter)