Sweetening the Pot for Submarines

By Dr. Ann Griffiths, 22 January 2026

Both TKMS and Hanwha Ocean are sweetening the pot to win the contract to build Canada’s new submarines. After a stressful year for Canada, being wooed is a great feeling.

Given uncertainty in economic and security matters, Germany is hoping to strengthen defence cooperation among non-US NATO countries, and this includes Canada and its plan for submarines. TKMS is talking with Norwegian and German companies to come up with a multi-billion-dollar investment package for Canada. In addition to the submarines – which are starting to feel a bit forgotten in all this – the talks cover possible commitments in rare earths, mining, artificial intelligence and automotive battery production. 

Hanwha Ocean is also sweetening the pot. In addition to advertisements in a variety of media, Hanwha just announced that it and Babcock Canada, which is involved in support and sustainment for Canada’s current submarine fleet, are pursuing a joint approach to the submarine acquisition project. The team proposes long-term employment, skills transfer and industrial participation in Canada into its bid. The partnership combines Hanwha Ocean’s shipbuilding experience with Babcock’s sustainment capabilities, local footprint and workforce experience.

It will be a tough decision, which I’m glad I don’t have to make. It needs to be made soon. And I fear that once again the decision will be based, not on getting necessary capability for the RCN quickly, but on the employment ashore or investment in Canada. I understand the government’s motives in this, but let’s hope that a decision is also about the capability of the subs and the timeliness of their arrival.    

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Preview: Canadian Naval Review Vol. 21 No. 3 (2026)

The second article, “The Strategic Utility of Aircraft Carriers in China’s Ambitions in East Asia,” discusses the rapid growth of China’s aircraft carrier capability and how and where Beijing would likely use them in the case of war. The third article is “Why Does Canada have a Navy? Reflecting on the Canadian Leaders at Sea Program.” In this article, the author addresses a simple question that was asked while he was participating in the CLaS program, and considers what a navy represents and why Canada has one. The final essay, “SS Nerissa: A Tragic Footnote to History,” tells the little-known story of the last voyage of SS Nerissa that was sunk by a U-boat while transporting troops and civilians across the Atlantic in the Second World War.

If that isn’t enough to spark your interest, we have our usual Making Waves commentaries. We have a commentary about hydrography in the Arctic. Sound boring? It’s not. If Canada is getting submarines that are expected to operate in the Arctic, Ottawa needs to act now to map the seafloor there. We have a commentary about the many historic discussions about moving the Coast Guard into the defence department. We have a commentary about the unthinkable – i.e., having naval ships that can act as ‘tripwires’ in the event that the United States decides to blockade Canada. We have an account of a conference in Australia, Canadian interest in East Asia, and preparing for Russia in the Arctic.

And, of course, we have our regular columns. “A View from the West” looks at North Korea’s increasing focus on its navy. “Dollars and Sense” examines the defence-related parts of Budget 2025, and “Warship Developments” updates us on several interesting recent naval decisions.  

In addition to all this great information, we have our usual amazing photos!

Stay tuned. In a few weeks, the issue will be in the mailbox of people who are lucky enough to be subscribers! It’s not too late for you to subscribe. See here for the Table of Contents.

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