Focus on Expanding Submarine Exports to Canada and Poland

Hanwha Ocean has signed a strategic partnership agreement with the UK’s Babcock International Group to expand its entry into the global naval vessel market. This partnership, announced on Nov. 29, aims to enhance cooperation between the two companies, particularly focusing on submarine exports to Canada and Poland.

Hanwha Ocean, a South Korean company renowned for its capabilities in naval vessel platform construction, has been actively seeking to strengthen its position in the global defense industry. This latest agreement with Babcock International Group, a major UK-based defense company, marks a significant step in that direction. Babcock is well-known for its extensive experience in naval vessel construction and maintenance, having won the Polish frigate project in 2022 and performed maintenance work on four Victoria-class submarines for the Canadian Navy since 2008.

David Lockwood, CEO of Babcock, expressed optimism about the partnership, stating, “Through strategic cooperation with Hanwha Ocean, we will further enhance our competitiveness in the Canadian and Polish submarine export markets and local military support businesses.” He added, “We will actively cooperate with Hanwha Ocean for international defense exports.”

Kim Hee-cheol, CEO of Hanwha Ocean, highlighted the significant synergy expected from the cooperation, saying, “The synergy expected from the cooperation between Hanwha Ocean, which has competitiveness in naval vessel platform construction, and Babcock, which has outstanding capabilities in the global follow-up military support field, is significant.” He further emphasized, “The partnership will increase the likelihood of winning global naval vessel export projects and provide seamless maintenance services throughout the entire lifecycle of the vessels to customers, making a significant contribution to the development of the defense sectors of both companies.”

This strategic partnership builds on previous agreements between the two companies. In June last year, Hanwha Ocean signed a Technical Cooperation Agreement (TCA) with Babcock Canada to promote the Canadian submarine project. Additionally, in February this year, Hanwha Ocean signed a Teaming Agreement (TA) with Babcock International Group in Poland for global submarine business cooperation.

Source: Businesskorea