Canada chooses German TKMS for new submarine | War Stories

The German shipbuilder has struck a deal with NATO partner Norway, winning South Korea’s Hanwha Sea.

Canada has said it wants Germany’s TKMS to build 12 submarines to help replace its aging fleet, the largest in the country’s history.

“In a dangerous and divided world, Canada must be ready to defend our interests, protect our citizens, build our economy, and protect our future,” Prime Minister Mark Carney said Monday before heading to Turkey for a NATO summit.

“Together with Germany and the Norwegian Allies, we will build faster and grow to increase our knowledge and create greater independence. We will build these ships to build Canada stronger,” said Carney.

Carney did not disclose the value of the deal.

TKMS is majority owned by the German conglomerate Thyssenkrupp. They formed an alliance with Norway, and conquered South Korea’s Hanwha lake, with which they had a fierce competition for the past few months.

Both Germany and Norway are members of NATO, as is Canada.

Canada has said the deal will be completed by the end of next year at the latest, with the first four ships expected to be delivered by 2034. A TKMS executive said he wants to see the deal completed by the end of this year, Reuters reported.

Canada currently has four submarines.

Canada’s The Globe and Mail put the deal at 20 to 30 billion Canadian dollars ($14bn to $21bn) for support alone, and 40 to 50 billion Canadian dollars ($28bn to $35bn) for operations, maintenance and upgrades.

Canada, like other NATO members, has been under pressure from US President Donald Trump to increase its defense spending. It has now reached NATO’s war spending of 2 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) earlier than originally planned.

NATO countries have agreed to increase their spending to 5 percent of GDP on defense and security products by 2035.

Shares of TKMS closed the day up 11 percent.