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Oliver Burkhard, CEO of German submarine maker TKMS, speaks in an interview in Ottawa, on Monday, March 2, 2026. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
By The Canadian Press

TKMS latest to team up with Quebec steel firm in sub competition

Apr 13, 2026 | 12:18 PM

OTTAWA — German submarine maker TKMS is teaming up with a domestic steel-forging company as it vies for a lucrative contract to supply the Canadian navy with new submarines.

TKMS says it inked a partnership with the Quebec-based forged-steel manufacturer Finkl Steel — Sorel to produce specialized stainless-steel materials for submarines.

It’s part of an overall strategy in the competition to include domestic companies in the submarine supply chain — even though they’re made in Germany.

Rival bidder Hanwha Oceans signed a major partnership with Sault Ste. Marie’s Algoma Steel earlier this year to buy steel from it to build subs and maintenance facilities — and spin up a new steel-beam mill.

The increasingly long list of partnerships the two rival sub makers are forging with various Canadian companies are largely contingent on winning Ottawa’s massive procurement contract for a fleet of new submarines.

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Hanwha is sailing one of its KSS-III submarines from South Korea to Canada with members of the Canadian Navy to show it off, and it is expected to arrive in Victoria, B.C., in May.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 13, 2026.

The Canadian Press

by The Canadian Press

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