Held in Gdańsk in the first half of October, the 23rd International Maritime and Military Exhibition BaltExpo 2025 was likely one of the last opportunities for public presentations by the companies participating in the Orka program, which concerns the acquisition of new-generation submarines for the Polish Navy. Among the most active participants was the South Korean shipbuilding conglomerate Hanwha Ocean, which unveiled part of its proposals (Hanwha Ocean aims to support the development of Poland’s sovereign naval capabilities under the Orka program).
Hanwha Ocean, together with the government of the Republic of Korea, is offering the Type 209 submarine as an interim solution / Photo: U.S. Navy
In line with the requirements of the Polish side, Hanwha Ocean, in cooperation with the government of the Republic of Korea, is offering Poland an extensive range of industrial cooperation proposals. This is related to public statements made by representatives of the Polish government – in recent weeks, Minister of National Defense Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz has repeatedly emphasized that an important factor in selecting a supplier will be the provision of an interim submarine (the so-called “gap filler”), which would allow the training of crews for the new class of vessel and potentially replace the currently operated ORP Orzeł. Meanwhile, the proposed technology transfer aims to enable the development of domestic MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul) capabilities and the integration of Polish facilities into the offeror’s global supply chain (Hanwha Ocean Presents New Offer for the Orka Program).
The South Korean proposal aligns with these requirements. Hanwha Ocean has officially announced that, if selected, the interim submarine would be one of the Type 209 vessels currently operated by the Republic of Korea Navy. According to the company’s statement, one of these submarines is scheduled to be decommissioned at the end of this year. Before being handed over to Poland, the vessel would undergo a thorough overhaul and modification process. The work, expected to take at least twelve months, would allow the submarine to be delivered to the Polish Navy in 2027.
Alongside the submarine, the Republic of Korea is offering to transfer a Pohang-class light frigate/corvette to Poland / Photo: Republic of Korea Navy
In this context, it is worth noting that South Korean shipyards have built twelve Type 209 submarines under a German license – three of which were exported to Indonesia.
In addition, the South Korean offer includes a proposal to transfer a Pohang-class light frigate to Poland. The vessel would be a gift from the South Korean government – in recent years, the Republic of Korea has transferred ships of this class to Colombia, Egypt, Peru, the Philippines, and Vietnam. In Poland’s case, the offer may serve as part of an assessment of the navy’s current capabilities and the growing need to secure the Baltic Sea. It is worth mentioning that the core of Poland’s Combat Ship Squadron currently consists of two Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates, the corvette ORP Kaszub, and the non-operational patrol vessel ORP Ślązak. Most of these are set to be replaced by the newly built Wicher-class frigates. For this reason, the South Korean proposal may be well received, as it includes the potential delivery of a vessel as early as 2027.
Representing the standards of the late 1980s, Pohang-class corvettes are now being gradually decommissioned from the Republic of Korea Navy and offered to allied nations / Photo: Republic of Korea Navy
In terms of industrial proposals consistent with the requirements of the Polish government, Hanwha Ocean has expressed interest in strengthening cooperation with Polish shipyards and maritime-sector companies to enable broad collaboration. According to official statements, Hanwha Ocean is willing to invest 100 million USD in Poland and share its know-how in advanced shipbuilding technologies covering both military and civilian segments. The cooperation could also include the joint execution of future contracts in Europe – the Korean corporation has shown interest, among others, in Estonia’s patrol vessel construction program. In this case, Polish shipyards could serve as suppliers of the vessels ordered by the Estonian government.
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