DSME launches first export submarine

South Korean shipbuilding company Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering on March 24 launched the first ever submarine to be exported to a customer outside South Korea.

DSME is building three submarines for the Indonesian Defence Ministry under a US$1,1 billion contract signed in 2011.

According to IHS Jane’s, the first two vessels will be built in South Korea while the last vessel will be built by the Indonesian state-owned shipbuilder PT PAL in Surabaya, Indonesia, under a technology transfer programme.

The 61-meter vessel displaces 1,400 tonnes and is operated by a crew of 40 sailors. DSME said the vessel has an operating range of approximately 10,000 nautical miles.