![Officials pose after Hanwha Group signed an MOU with the Alberta government at the provincial government building in Edmonton, Alberta, on April 21. [Photo provided by Hanwha]](https://image.ajunews.com/content/image/2026/04/22/20260422082043425900.jpg)
SEOUL, April 22 (AJP) -South Korea's Hanwha Group pitching for a $40 billion submarine program in Canada is widening its support base across the North American country to win favor against its European competition.
Hanwha Group is expanding cooperation with the Canadian province of Alberta across key industries including energy, defense and shipbuilding as it seeks to broaden local industrial partnerships and economic cooperation tied to Hanwha Ocean’s bid for Canada’s Canadian Patrol Submarine Project, or CPSP.
The group signed a memorandum of understanding with the Alberta government Tuesday (local time) at the provincial government building in Edmonton. Attendees included Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, Economic Development and Trade Minister Joseph Schow, South Korean Ambassador to Canada Lim Ki-mo and Hanwha Energy CEO Lee Jae-kyu.
The two sides agreed to pursue mid- to long-term investment and build an industrial ecosystem in Alberta beyond individual projects. Hanwha Energy, Hanwha Ocean, Hanwha Aerospace and Hanwha Power will take part, expanding cooperation in oil, liquefied natural gas, hydrogen, carbon capture and storage, and defense and shipbuilding supply chains.
Hanwha said the MOU focuses on a low-carbon energy transition, industrial growth and stronger supply-chain stability. In the near term, the sides plan to expand trade in resources such as natural gas. Over the mid to long term, they aim to broaden cooperation to hydrogen- and ammonia-based clean energy and carbon-management infrastructure.
Hanwha also said it will support efforts aligned with Canada’s Defense Industrial Strategy, including strengthening domestic industrial capabilities, maintenance and operations capacity, and building a regional defense ecosystem. Alberta is attracting about $6.5 million in investment from the federal government as it grows into a defense manufacturing hub.
Smith said, “Alberta is a global business hub, and this agreement with Hanwha Group shows our competitiveness as a destination for international investment.”
Lee said, “This MOU has elevated our cooperative relationship with Alberta by another step,” adding, “We will bring together the group’s capabilities to deliver tangible results across a range of areas.”
Hanwha has been mounting a groupwide push to win the Canadian submarine project, expanding its outreach beyond inland industrial bases to key maritime hubs.
Earlier, Hanwha Ocean CEO Kim Hee-cheol visited Halifax on April 14 and discussed defense and industrial cooperation with officials from Nova Scotia. Halifax is a strategic center of the country’s naval industry.
The talks covered defense readiness, maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) capabilities, workforce development and industrial infrastructure, as Hanwha Ocean shared its long-term strategy for the project. The local partnership is part of Hanwha Ocean’s strategy to shorten delivery timelines and strengthen localization as it competes with Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS) in the final stage of the bid.
The company has also partnered with five Canadian firms — OSI Maritime Systems, EMCS Industries, Techsol Marine, Jastram Technologies and Curtiss-Wright — to reinforce its local industrial base.
Such localization efforts are seen as critical, as Canada places strong emphasis on domestic industrial and economic contributions in major defense procurement programs.
Canada’s CPSP involves the procurement of up to 12 diesel-electric submarines of around 3,000 tons. The contract value alone is estimated at $13.5 billion, with the total project size, including 30 years of MRO, potentially reaching $40 billion.
A consortium of Hanwha Ocean and HD Hyundai Heavy Industries is competing against Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, with a final decision expected around June.
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