Question Period Note: Canadian Patrol Submarine Project Request for Information

Public Services and Procurement Canada, on behalf of the Department of National Defence, issued a Request for Information to industry stakeholders to gain further information on the availability of submarines that are currently in service or in production, and the industry’s capability and capacity to build and deliver up to 12 submarines to Canada.

• Canada has the largest coastline in the world, and it is essential that the Royal Canadian Navy be equipped with superior underwater surveillance capability to maintain our country’s security and sovereignty
  • The Navy’s current Victoria-class submarine fleet is scheduled to be decommissioned in the mid-2030s and replacement submarines are needed
  • A Request for Information was published to obtain further information on the availability of submarines that are currently in service or in production, and industry’s capability and capacity to build and deliver up to 12 submarines to Canada

If pressed on the Request for Information:

• The Royal Canadian Navy requires its first new submarine by the mid-2030s. Starting now will inform on how to best obtain this capability
• Canada is seeking information on the availability of submarines that are currently in service or in production
• The Request for Information will also engage Canadian industry on in-service support and infrastructure for the new fleet, including how partnerships with Canadian industry could be leveraged to create economic benefits in Canada

Through Canada’s defence policy, Our North, Strong and Free, the Government of Canada is providing members of the Royal Canadian Navy with the equipment they need to maintain current and future operational readiness.

In addition to the funded initiatives in Our North, Strong and Free, Canada also identified ten capabilities for which options will be explored, including renewing and expanding the Royal Canadian Navy’s submarine fleet.

Canada’s key submarine capability requirements will be stealth, lethality, persistence and Arctic deployability – meaning that the submarine must have extended range and endurance.

Canada’s new fleet will need to provide a unique combination of these capabilities 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.

• Respondents provided their initial feedback on November 18, 2024
  • 24 responses including 7 from Original Equipment Manufacturers (submarine builders) were received. \[Redacted\]
  • \[Redacted\]
  • The integrated project team is analyzing the responses received with a view to moving to the next stages of the project. In addition to the Request for Information, Canada continues to meet 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
  • To avoid any gaps in Canadian submarine capabilities, Canada anticipates a contract award by 2028, with the delivery of the first replacement submarine no later than 2035