Orka submarine program: Step towards modernity with Hanwha Ocean

Orka submarine program The competition for the ship itself is becoming clearer. It becomes a rivalry of industrial visions, in which it is crucial who will guarantee Poland sustainable competences, jobs and real sovereignty in the operation of the submarine fleet. Korean shipbuilding company Hanwha Ocean convinces that their proposal is not a wish catalogue, but a project ready for immediate implementation – full participation of Polish shipyards.

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A decision closer to the final. The recommendation team has already indicated the preferred offer

Although the public debate continues to focus on comparing the parameters of individual submarines, the decision-making process has entered a crucial phase. The team appointed by the Ministry of Defence, responsible for analysing offers and selecting the recommended contractor, has already completed its work. The recommendation document was sent to the Council of Ministers to approve the outcome of this evaluation, thus transferring Orka submarine program for the selection stage of the tenderer.

The final decision now belongs to the Prime Minister, which means that Orka submarine program practically went beyond the technical consultation stage and entered the strategic area of state decisions. For Poland, this is a defining moment about the shape of future submarine capabilities and the direction of development of the shipbuilding industry for the next decades.

In this context, our editorial team addressed representatives of the South Korean Hanwha Ocean, because it is their proposal that goes beyond the description of the individual itself and answers the key question today: how to build sustainable industrial autonomy in the area of submarine technology in Poland.

Korean model of cooperation. Less presentations, more details

While some of the participants in the program focus on platform itself declarations, Hanwha Ocean is increasingly accentuating the industrial aspect. Koreans openly say that Poland should not only buy submarines, but the whole system of competences – from maintenance, modernisation, to development of its own projects.

Seong-Woo Park, Vice President of Hanwha Ocean responsible for Orka's offer, emphasized in an interview with us the thing that has been going through their message for months:

In the world of submarines, the real advantage is the ability to maintain the fleet independently. The purchasing State must be able to keep it in its own shipyards without waiting for the help of other states.

In another passage he added:

Poland should not choose between ship and industry. The ship is important, but it is only the industry that builds the sovereignty and resilience of the state. Therefore, our proposal is based on the transfer of real competences, not on the appearance of them.

Hanwha Ocean's proposal in Orka programme and the development of Polish shipbuilding industry / Shipyard Portal — Photo by Hanwha Ocean

Unlike PowerPoint's presentation, the Koreans began to "import" concrete projects, cooperation models and investment schedule to Poland. It is a different philosophy of action: instead of promising, they prefer to show which elements are ready to implement and what competences may arise in Gdynia already in the first years of the program.

Polish industry as the foundation of Hanwha Ocean's offer

The most powerful element of Hanwha Ocean's proposal is the scale of cooperation with Polish shipyards and supply chain companies. In Gdynia and Gdańsk, the Koreans have already visited most of the key entities – from PGZ War Shipyard, via Nauta, to production companies from Pomerania.

This is to lead to the creation of an MRO centre in Poland for the entire future fleet of submarines, which is of fundamental strategic importance.

The park highlighted another issue:

We remember very well how painful it was for Korea to depend on foreign subcontractors. This experience has taught us that real security starts only when technology and competence are in the user country. Therefore, we want to provide Poland with the full range of knowledge needed to operate our ships.

With the transfer of technology, jobs are to be created – up to 1,300 jobs in the Pomeranian Voivodeship. This applies to both shipyards, as well as companies supplying electrical systems, hydraulic, navigational or deck equipment components.

For Poland, this means more than participation in the Ork programme: entering a new level of competence in the field of submarines.

KSS-III Batch-II – a hull that builds industry

Koreans offer Poland a unit KSS-III Batch-II – one of the largest and most advanced conventional submarines available on the market at the moment. The ship is 89 metres long, has an AIP drive and a set of lithium-ion batteries that increase autonomy and allow long-term operations in the Baltic – this responds to the requirements of the Armed Forces Agency.

Although the platform itself raises interest due to the size and set of sensors, The Koreans emphasize that its advantage is primarily:

modern technologies supporting ship operation in shallow waters,
stable structure developed for years in a demanding operational environment,
the capability to arm the vessel in accordance with NATO requirements,
readiness to integrate with weapons designated by Poland,
a wide range of state-of-the-art sonars and hydrolocation systems produced in Korea, which constitute the domestic industry's own solutions.

However, something else is crucial: the possibility of real participation of Polish companies in the construction and subsequent maintenance of these units.

The park put it this way:

The ship is important, but for Poland it is only the beginning. If Orka submarine program is to bring strategic benefits to the country, must be based on co-creation, not just the delivery of ready-made units.

Bridge and training support

Hanwha Ocean announces the possibility of transferring Poland to one of the KSS-I series ships as a bridge solution. This would mean that Polish Navy Poland it would regain its submarine capabilities faster than the schedules for the construction of new units. Because we are talking about 2027 here, not as the Korean website announced in 2028.

Importantly, the training is to include not only crews, but also employees of Polish shipyards. Koreans declare joint training modules with the Navy of the Republic of Korea – this is a practical approach, not ceremonial.

Korean credibility – experience of necessity

South Korea has functioned for decades as a threatened and technologically dependent state. This experience has created a specific industrial culture: not promise, but deliver.

This method of action can also be seen in the Ork program. Koreans have been building their own submarines for years, developing successive generations, and their solutions are tested in a demanding environment – surrounded by three seas and threatened by an unstable neighbour.

In practice, this means something that is often lacking in European offers: the predictability of schedules and the readiness to transfer technologies so that the user state is never in a situation of "service addiction".

The Park summarized this in one sentence, which hit the heart of the Polish debate:

In the case of arms provided by Hanwha, the schedule shall be fully completed. Some weapons are supplied even earlier, and this proves that once the agreed delivery schedule is valid throughout the contract, without additional annexes.

Why can this offer be a breakthrough for Polish industry?

The Korean proposal has a purely strategic dimension: it is one of the few in the Orka programme that treats Polish shipyards not as a subcontractor but as an equivalent partner.

For Poland, this means the possibility of building the sovereignty of the arms industry and access to the latest technology which has been missing for decades. The ship can be bought, but competence cannot be ordered in the catalogue. These must be obtained – best with a reliable partner, who also once started from scratch and knows how important it is to become independent of external suppliers.