Hanwha Ocean and Canada Explore Industrial Cooperation under Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP)
Minister Skeete and a Quebec delegation visited Hanwha Ocean’s advanced shipbuilding facilities in Geoje, South Korea, to explore cooperation opportunities related to the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP), gaining firsthand insight into the KSS-III submarine proposed for Canada’s future fleet. The visit highlighted potential industrial collaboration between Canada and South Korea in the defense, naval shipbuilding, and submarine manufacturing sectors.
During the facility tour, the delegation observed Hanwha Ocean’s highly automated production lines, including robotic welding systems, smart-yard technologies, and an augmented-reality-enabled painting demonstration that showcased the company’s advanced digital manufacturing capabilities. The delegation also boarded and toured the KSS-III submarine launched for the Republic of Korea Navy in October 2025 ,the same submarine design Hanwha Ocean is proposing for the CPSP. The visit provided detailed exposure to the submarine’s design, construction process, and interior systems, while Hanwha Ocean emphasized its mature production capacity and accelerated delivery schedule, underlining its ability to deliver complex naval platforms on budget and on time.
The discussions focused on potential long-term industrial collaboration and how Quebec’s shipbuilding and defence industrial base could be integrated into Hanwha Ocean’s CPSP industrial framework. Areas explored included workforce integration, equipment localization, sustainment activities, and supply-chain participation. Particular attention was given to leveraging the Lévis region’s marine cluster, home to Davie Shipbuilding, one of Canada’s major shipyards, as part of a broader strategy to strengthen domestic industrial participation under the submarine program.
Minister Skeete’s visit forms part of a series of official Canadian tours to Hanwha Ocean facilities, following earlier visits by the Honourable Victor Fedeli, Ontario’s Minister of Economic Development, and the Honourable Stephen Fuhr, Canada’s Secretary of State for Defence Procurement. The continued engagement reflects growing Canadian interest in evaluating industrial, technological, and delivery capabilities for the country’s next-generation submarine fleet.
Hanwha Ocean is a leading global shipbuilder with more than four decades of experience in complex naval and commercial shipbuilding programs. Operating from its large-scale integrated shipyard in Geoje, which spans five square kilometers and employs more than 31,000 workers, the company combines industrial scale with operational expertise to deliver modern in-service naval platforms supported by a resilient through-life support model. Since its establishment in 1973, Hanwha Ocean has delivered more than 1,400 vessels worldwide and builds approximately 45 commercial and naval ships annually. The company has extensive experience in the design, construction, and sustainment of submarines and surface combatants for the Republic of Korea Navy. Hanwha Group, a Fortune 500 company with over 100,000 employees and 91 subsidiaries globally, operates across defense, energy and ocean solutions, aerospace and mechatronics, finance, retail, and services.
Hanwha Ocean’s KSS-III is a proven, in-service, actively produced submarine that fully meets and exceeds the operational requirements of the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project. The platform offers superior underwater surveillance capability and deployability in Arctic conditions, with extended range and endurance designed to provide stealth, persistence, and lethality to ensure Canada can detect, track, deter, and, if necessary, defeat adversaries across the Pacific, Atlantic, and Arctic Oceans.
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Hanwha Ocean states it can deliver four KSS-III submarines to fully replace Canada’s Victoria Class fleet before 2035 if a contract is signed in 2026. Earlier retirement of the Victoria Class fleet would result in estimated savings of approximately $1 billion in maintenance and support costs. The additional eight submarines would be delivered at a rate of one per year, enabling the complete fleet of 12 submarines to be delivered by 2043. According to the company, no other option can match this delivery schedule.
The KSS-III represents South Korea’s latest evolution in conventional submarine technology, developed through decades of spiral development of a modern, ocean-going submarine design. Equipped with Lithium-ion batteries and an Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) system, the KSS-III CPS offers submerged endurance exceeding 7,000 nautical miles, making it one of the longest-endurance conventional submarines currently in service. It is fitted with a state-of-the-art sonar system and Korean-developed acoustic tiles that enhance target detection and stealth performance. The platform is optimized for Anti-Submarine Warfare, Anti-Surface Warfare, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR), minelaying operations, and Special Operations Forces support.
The KSS-III is recognized as the only proven, in-service submarine platform capable of fully supporting Canada’s “Three Ocean Strategy.” Importantly, it is not an export-only model but the same class of submarine actively operated by the Republic of Korea Navy in real-world conditions. This ensures access to an established supply chain and validated operational and maintenance data throughout more than 30 years of in-service support. As the backbone of the ROK Navy submarine force, the KSS-III also offers Canada the opportunity to join the international KSS-III User Group, which includes a growing number of participating nations.
