South Korea plans to provide its first-generation Jang Bogo-class submarine to Poland at no cost, as Seoul seeks to support a domestic bid for Warsaw’s next-generation submarine program, the Ministry of National Defense said Wednesday.
The submarine completed its final operational deployment on Nov. 19 and is scheduled to be officially retired at the end of the year. After decommissioning, it will be transferred to Poland “for effective use in defense exports and cooperation,” the ministry said.
Multiple military sources said the decision is intended to support Korean industry participating in Poland’s “Orka” project, a major procurement program to introduce three new 3,000-ton submarines.
According to local reports, Hanwha Ocean is competing against Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems, Italy’s Fincantieri and Sweden’s Saab for a contract valued at around 3.4 trillion won ($2.31 billion), which could rise to up to 8 trillion won if long-term maintenance and operations are included. Poland is expected to select a preferred bidder as early as this month.
The Jang Bogo submarine, built at a German shipyard in 1988 and launched in 1991, entered service with the Korean Navy in 1994 as the country’s first modern submarine. Over its three decades of service, it sailed roughly 633,000 kilometers before completing its final mission last week.
Officials say the transfer is intended to deepen defense cooperation with Poland, which has become one of South Korea’s largest arms buyers in recent years.
Poland signed a landmark contract in 2022 to procure 1,000 K2 tanks and about 670 K9 howitzers, followed by a second K2 deal worth roughly $6.5 billion this year — the largest single weapons contract in Korean defense export history. Its cumulative orders of Korean defense systems now total around $23.2 billion.
The ministry said the submarine transfer will help “build practical channels for cooperation” with the Polish Navy and create favorable conditions for Korea’s participation in the Orka program.
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