Canada Starts Process to Acquire Up to 12 New Submarines

The submarine HMCS Windsor heads out of the harbour in Halifax on May 26, 2016. Vice-Admiral Mark Norman, outgoing commander of the Royal Canadian Navy, says Canada is vulnerable and needs to work even more closely with the United States to improve the maritime security of North America. The Canadian Press/Andrew Vaughan

Ottawa has begun the official process to procure as many as 12 new submarines as part of its bid to ramp up defence capabilities in the Arctic while increasing its NATO defence spending.

A request for information (RFI) to industry stakeholders was issued by the federal government this week on its tendering website, marking the first phase in the process of replacing the navy’s aging Victoria-class submarines.

The RFI, which expires on Nov. 18, indicates the government is moving ahead with its plan, but it does not commit Canada to any actual submarine purchases. The purpose of the RFI is to gain information about the availability of submarines currently in service or production as well as the industry’s ability to build and deliver up to 12 submarines to Canada, the government said in a Sept. 17 release.

“The procurement of up to 12 conventionally-powered, under-ice capable submarines for the Royal Canadian Navy will enhance Canada’s ability to detect and deter maritime threats, control our maritime approaches, and project power and striking capabilities further from our shores,” Defence Minister Bill Blair said in the release.

“We look forward to working with industry partners to implement this crucial project, in support of the priorities outlined in Our North, Strong and Free.”

National Defence expects to award a contract by 2028, with the first replacement submarine to be delivered no later than 2035, the government said. Canada’s current fleet of four submarines, which was purchased second-hand from the British in the 1990s, is expected to remain operational into the mid-to late 2030s.

Ottawa officially announced its plan to procure up to 12 new submarines earlier this summer at the NATO Summit in Washington, D.C. Blair said that Canada had already begun the process of meeting with submarine manufacturers, but did not offer a timeline for the acquisition or say how much Canada planned to spend to upgrade its fleet.

Although the RFI does not specify a budget, the process will help National Defence to determine how many submarines the country can financially support and what resources would be necessary for fleet maintenance, the government said.

Consultations are also continuing “with officials from allied and partner countries, and companies and navies in Europe and Asia that currently have or are in the process of building submarines that may meet Canada’s requirements,” the government said.

The submarine procurement, which is part of the Liberal government’s defence policy plan, would “inevitably” help towards meeting NATO’s military spending target of 2 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP), Blair said at the July conference. Canada currently spends just shy of 1.4 percent of its GDP on the military.

The defence policy, released in April, places new focus on protecting Canadian sovereignty in the North and includes billions of dollars in new spending. The plan includes the procurement of new submarines, long-range missiles and early-warning aircraft, and boosting military spending to 1.76 percent by 2030.

Nuclear Subs

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has previously referred to the purchase of nuclear submarines as a means to ensure the defence of Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic, but also as a way to join AUKUS, a U.S.-led trilateral security partnership with the United Kingdom and Australia. The countries work together on areas such as nuclear submarine propulsion and quantum technology as part of the defence-sharing arrangement.

Canada is currently an observer in the second phase of AUKUS, but not a participant. The partnership was formed to counter Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific region.

“We will be looking at what type of submarines are most appropriate for Canada’s responsibility in protecting the longest coastline in the world,” Trudeau said during an April 8 press conference.

“I think it’s really important that allies, particularly across the Indo-Pacific, work together in stronger and tighter ways and those Canadian conversations with our partners will continue.”

Neither the RFI nor the government press release indicated whether Canada will be seeking subs with nuclear capability.

Key requirements include “stealth, lethality, persistence and Arctic deployability – meaning that the submarine must have extended range and endurance,” the government said.

“Canada’s new fleet will need to provide a unique combination of these requirements to ensure that Canada can detect, track, deter and, if necessary, defeat adversaries in all three of Canada’s oceans while contributing meaningfully alongside allies and enabling the Government of Canada to deploy this fleet abroad in support of our partners and allies.”