Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems and South Korea’s Hanwha Ocean have been named finalists in Canada’s bid to acquire up to 12 new diesel-electric submarines for the Royal Canadian Navy.
Known as the Patrol Submarine Project, the effort aims to replace the aging Victoria-class boats, purchased used from the UK in the late 1990s and set for retirement by the mid-2030s.
Ottawa estimates the project’s life-cycle cost at as much as 43 billion Canadian dollars ($31.1 billion), with the first submarine expected to arrive by 2035.
The competition, opened in September 2024, attracted 25 entries, but only Thyssenkrupp and Hanwha satisfied Canadian requirements for stealth, endurance, and Arctic capability.
