Canada to Expand Submarine Fleet threefold to Defend Against Russian Presence in the Arctic

The Government of Canada has declared its intention to radically increase the submarine fleet of the Navy. The state intends to purchase 12 non-nuclear submarines. The current Canadian Navy has only 4 Upholder-class submarines, which were purchased from the UK.

This is part of the global government’s Our North, Strong and Free program, which provides for the development and protection of the Canadian part of the Arctic from encroachment.

It is estimated that the Arctic region will become a place of active resource extraction and a region of powerful logistics routes by 2050. This means that Canada needs to protect its interests, primarily from russia.

Therefore, it is quite logical that Canada will significant strengthen the submarine component of the Navy that which can effectively patrol and protect country’s interests in the Arctic and, take part in a battle under the ice if it is necessary.

According to Naval News, the Department of National Defense is currently in the process of meeting with manufacturers and preparing a formal Request for Information on the possibility of an order. It will be published this fall.

Therefore, it is currently difficult to talk about the timing and cost of such a strengthening of the Canadian Navy. At the same time, the cost of submarines will have to be added to the cost of building the relevant infrastructure in the Arctic areas. But it should be noted that over the next 20 years, the Government of Canada has planned to spend $73 billion on defense.

But in any case, we can give approximate prices for non-nuclear submarines. In particular, in March 2024, the Netherlands agreed to purchase four French submarines. They were special non-nuclear versions of the Barracuda nuclear attack submarines. Although the cost of the procurement remained unknown, the total estimate, including infrastructure costs, will be $6.1 billion by 2039.

Earlier War Ukraine-Russia News Hub reported that Canada had announced thousands of CRV7 rockets and more LAV 6 vehicles for Ukraine.