HANWHA OCEAN MEETS WITH MORE THAN 35 CANADIAN COMPANIES AND ORGANIZATIONS AT DEFSEC 2025
South Korean shipbuilder continues to actively seek Canadian partners and suppliers for Canadian Patrol Submarine Project
Hanwha Ocean was pleased to once again attend DEFSEC in Halifax, Nova Scotia on October 1 and 2, 2025.
Following selection by the Government of Canada as a qualified supplier for the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP) in August 2025, Hanwha has continued its ongoing efforts to identify Canadian companies that can become partners and suppliers on CPSP and other programs.
This year at DEFSEC, Hanwha met with more than 35 companies and organizations, including Arcfield, Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions, Canevas Design, Chantier Naval Forillon, Dafocom Solutions, Exfo, Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, Genoa Design, GeoSpectrum Technologies, Hexsor, Imagine 4D, InnovMarine, InvestQuebec, Irving Shipbuilding, Lockheed Martin Canada, Marmen, Marecomms, Novolecs, Prairies Economic Development Canada, Rennaissance, SC Techno, Syntronic, Telenova, Trident Maritime Systems, Ultra Maritime and University of New Brunswick.
Hanwha is committed to establishing a robust and long-term presence in Canada and partnership with the Government of Canada and Canadian industry in a variety the areas that will create jobs and economic growth, accelerate Canada’s defence capabilities, and enhance cooperation, partnership and supply chains between Canada and South Korea – a relationship that is becoming more and more important, and one that supports the objectives of Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy.
Since 2023, Hanwha has met with hundreds of Canadian companies and signed Teaming Agreements and Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with more than a dozen, including Babcock Canada, BlackBerry, CAE, Curtiss-Wright Indal Technologies, Des Nedhe Group, Gastops, J Squared Technologies, L3 Harris and Modest Tree.
Further, Hanwha has entered into contracts with multiple Canadian firms. ModestTree, in Nova Scotia, was awarded a project to create a digital mock-up of the KSS-III CPS. Hepburn Engineering, in Ontario, was awarded a multi-million dollar contract for its Replenishment-at-Sea (RAS) system that will be installed on the Republic of Korea Navy’s AOE-II (Auxiliary Oiler and Explosives) vessels. Curtiss-Wright Indal Technologies, in Ontario, has supplied its Towed Array Handling System for the KSS-III.
Hanwha’s KSS-III Canadian Patrol Submarine is proven, in-service, in active production, and meets all the operational and urgent delivery requirements for CPSP, including superior underwater surveillance capability and deployability in the Arctic with extended range and endurance that will provide stealth, persistence and lethality to ensure that Canada can detect, track, deter and, if necessary, defeat adversaries in all 3 of its oceans.
Importantly, Hanwha can deliver four KSS-III CPS to fully replace Canada’s current Victoria Class fleet before 2035 if on contract in 2026. Earlier retirement of the Victoria Class fleet will result in estimated savings of approximately $1 Billion on maintenance and support costs. The additional 8 submarines will be delivered at a rate of one per year, meaning the entire fleet of 12 submarines can be delivered to Canada by 2043. No other option can come anywhere close to this delivery schedule.
About KSS-III Canadian Patrol Submarine (www.KSS-III.ca)
The KSS-III Canadian Patrol Submarine (KSS-III CPS) is South Korea’s latest evolution in conventional submarine technology—indigenously designed and constructed through decades of spiral development of a modern, conventional, ocean-going submarine. Over the last four decades, Hanwha Ocean has continued to evolve a proven MOTS submarine design culminating with the latest batch of the KSS submarine fleet.
Equipped with Lithium-ion batteries and an Air Independent Propulsion (AIP) system, the KSS-III CPS offers the longest submerged endurance among conventional submarines in service. The platform is fully optimized for Anti-Submarine Warfare, Anti-Surface Warfare, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR), Minelaying, and Special Operations Forces (SOF) support.
KSS-III is not an export-only model—it is the same class of submarine actively operated by the Republic of Korea Navy in real-world conditions. This ensures Canada will benefit from a proven platform, backed by an established supply chain and validated operational and maintenance data throughout the 30+ years of in-service support (ISS).
The KSS-III is the backbone of the ROK Navy submarine force. Acquisition of the KSS-III would allow Canada to be a member of the international KSS-III User Group which consists of a growing number of nations.
About Hanwha Ocean (www.hanwhaocean.com/en)
Hanwha Ocean’s shipyard in Geoje, South Korea, spanning 5 square kilometres, is one of the largest and most advanced shipbuilding facilities in the world and is where we build the KSS-III submarine. With more than 31,000 employees, Hanwha Ocean specializes in the design and construction of various naval and commercial vessels, including submarines, destroyers, frigates, auxiliary vessels, container ships, and tankers as well as offshore platforms, drilling rigs, Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FPSO) units and Floating Production Units (FPUs).
For more than 40 years, Hanwha Ocean has been building and servicing submarines for the Republic of Korea Navy and other navies.
Since 1973, the company has built more than 1,400 vessels, including 114 naval vessels. The company designed and delivered the first KSS-III to the Republic of Korea Navy in 2021, and the second in 2023.
In 2023 alone, Hanwha Ocean constructed 41 naval and commercial vessels.