Overview
- German and Norwegian defence ministers visited Ottawa to urge Canada to join their TKMS-led 212CD partnership for up to 12 diesel-electric submarines.
- Germany’s Boris Pistorius said TKMS could maintain and potentially build submarines or parts in Canada to satisfy domestic production goals.
- Prime Minister Mark Carney is set to travel to South Korea this month to inspect Hanwha’s facilities as part of the evaluation of the rival KSS-III bid.
- Hanwha says it can deliver the first boat by 2032 and four by 2035, while TKMS says it can deliver before 2035, as Canada’s four existing subs are due to retire by 2035.
- No budget has been announced, and an expert estimate pegs lifecycle acquisition at about $10 billion per submarine, underscoring scrutiny of costs alongside NATO interoperability and economies of scale.