Global submarine suppliers compete for a rapidly shrinking market
Peru continues to operate the Type 209/1200-class submarine Angamos. (Photo: Ministerio De Defensa Del Peru)
Diminishing submarine competitions worldwide are leaving fewer acquisition opportunities, pushing contractors toward alternatives.
Siemon Wezeman, a senior researcher with the Arms Transfers Programme at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), told Shephard at the beginning of last month that “the market for high-end submarines is now largely filled”, cautioning that most countries with a requirement for advanced non-nuclear submarines had already placed their orders.
That observation prompted a closer look at exactly how many genuine submarine acquisition opportunities remain open worldwide.
Analysis by Johannes Fischbach, a maritime research analyst at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, suggested the answer is smaller than a simple list of countries with submarine ambitions might imply.
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