Mortar Acquisition Project Lot 1 - 60mm Mortar of the Philippine Navy (Marines)

The Department of National Defense (DND) has started the procurement process for the acquisition of Mortars for the Philippine Navy (PN), specifically for its sub-unit, the Philippine Marine Corps (PMC).

These additional new mortars will help improve the firepower and fire support capability of each of the Marine Battalion Landing Teams (MBLT), which are considered by many as under-equipped in terms of fire support assets.

The project, called the Mortar Acquisition Project of the Philippine Navy, is among the Horizon 2 Phase Priority Projects under the Revised AFP Modernization Program (RAFPMP), as covered by Republic Act 10349.

This specific resource page covers the Mortar Acquisition Project Lot 1 - 60mm Mortars.

An M224 60mm mortar used by the US Marine Corps. Photo credits to Military.com.

Project Summary:

Mortar Lot 1 - 60mm Mortar Acquisition Project

Note: edit as of 28 June 2024.

* End User: Philippine Navy (Philippine Marine Corps)

* Quantity: 240 units of 60mm mortars, including support systems, ILS and training

* Modernization Phase: Horizon 2 Phase Priority Projects

* Project ABC: Php444,530,757.00

* Acquisition Mode: Negotiated Procurement / Government-to-Government with Spanish Ministry of Defense.

* Source of Funding: GAA Funds through AFP Modernization Program Trust Fund

* Tender Number: N/A

* SARO Release: 
   - SARO-BMB-D-23-0022489 dated 16 August 2023 (full amount)
   - SARO-BMB-D-24-0004657 dated 25 June 2024 (full amount to replace earlier SARO from 2023 that was not released.

* Winning Proponent: EXPAL Systems S.A. (Spain)

* Product for Delivery: TBC
 
* Contract Price: Php444,435,636.00

* Residual Amount: Php95,121.00

* First post by MaxDefense: June 2019 (see MD's AFP Modernization Program List)

* MaxDefense Searching Hashtag/s: #PN60mmMortarAcquisition #PMC60mmMortarAcquisition

* Status: Mode of Procurement changed to Negotiated Procurement, with Terms of Reference approved on 28 April 2022. SARO for full project amount was released on 16 August 2023. No update on NOA release as of 04 February 2024, although the project's SARO was reissued on 25 June 2024 which means the project was stalled and funding was not released.

Overview:

The Philippine Navy has originally planned to procure a total of 420 units of infantry mortars of different sizes for the Philippine Marine Corps (PMC), consisting of 240 units of 60mm mortars, 120 units of 81mm mortars, and 60 units of 120mm mortars, as part of the Horizons 1 to 3 program of the RAFPMP.

All 420 mortars were programmed for acquisition under the Horizon 2 Phase.

The 60mm mortars are expected to be assigned at a company level as part of a heavy weapons section to support all units operating under the company. 

But the final version of the Horizon 2 Priority Projects list approved by Pres. Rodrigo Roa Duterte and released in June 2018 significantly reduced the budget to just Php694,452,000.00, which effectively reduces the quantity of the mortars that can be acquired.

This can be confirmed with the release of the DND Bids and Awards Committee Resolution No. DND/PN-MAP-81MM-L2-19-04 dated 07 November 2019 which indicated that only 240 units of 60mm mortars, 30 units of 81mm Mortars (instead of 120 units) and 8 units of 120mm mortars (instead of 60 units) would be procured.

The Mortar Acquisition Project was suppose to be funded under the AFP Modernization Program for Fiscal Year 2018, but this was pushed back, with the  Lot 1 - 60mm Mortar Acquisition now funded under AFP Modernization Program for Fiscal Year 2022.

Based on the Procurement Monitoring Report by the DND as of January 2023, the project is still under negotiations, most likely with Spain's EXPAL Systems which already got awarded with the Lots 2 and 3 of the project.

EXPAL previously supplied the Hungarian Ground Forces with its M-08 Combi mortar. A variant of this design could be the one EXPAL could offer to the Philippine Navy. Photo credits to Wikipedia.

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U P D A T E S:
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06 March 2023:

The DND has released a Procurement Monitoring Report as of January 2023 indicating that the Lot 1 - 60mm Mortar Acquisition Project is still being negotiated and has not yet moved on beyond that process.

This is one of the projects that we would be watching this year as it is expected to be awarded soon, as its funding might expire and it would not be in the best interest of the DND and the Philippine Navy.

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22 August 2023:

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has released the SARO for the full amount of the project's cost as of 16 August 2023.

Based on the SARO, the amount is different from the budget which means that the SARO amount is the contract value with the winning proponent costing Php444,435,636.00, or Php95,121.00 less than the ABC.

Also, we received confirmation that Spain's EXPAL Systems is the supplier for this project, which is also the same supplier for the Philippine Navy (Marines) 81mm and 120mm Mortar Acquisition Projects.

SARO screenshot showing the actual SARO release details. Photo screenshot from DBM SARO 2023 listing.

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28 June 2024:

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has re-issued the SARO for the project, worth the full contract cost, as of 25 June 2024.

This means that despite the issuance of SARO in 2023, the project appears to have not pushed through, and it was only in 2024 that the issue was settled.

It remains to be seen what the issue was that held the project for a year.

Screenshot from DBM SARO 2024.

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First edit and release: 06 March 2023
Copyright MaxDefense Philippines / Philippine Defense Resource