The federal government is in the process of choosing between bidders on the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project (CPSP), a decision that could have long-term impacts far beyond replacing the submarine fleet. 

Hanwha Ocean, the company behind the Republic of Korea’s proposal, is preparing for a broad, $6.3 billion investment into building with Canada, if chosen for the contract. Along with technological transfers, Hanwha’s proposed strategic partnership agreement would mean investments in Ottawa’s efforts to expand liquified natural gas (LNG) production, hydrogen infrastructure, energy, and advanced manufacturing. 

In fact, senior officials from both countries met in Ottawa earlier this month, where they talked about cooperating on strengthening Canada’s resource development, energy production and supply chains. By agreeing on sectors to prioritize, Canada took a meaningful step toward becoming a main Korean supplier of energy, critical minerals and advanced industrial products.

All told, this future collaboration with Korea would generate $96.3 billion for Canadian GDP over time and add the equivalent of more than 433,000 Canadian job years. Increased trade, nurturing burgeoning industries, and a new venture capital fund to support Canadian innovation could make a successful partnership revolutionary for our country’s economic capacity. 

At a time of national re-evaluation, a partnership of this scale with Hanwha Ocean would mean close and prosperous economic ties between Canada and the Republic of Korea for decades. If reached, this CPSP deal would mean tying federal defence procurement with real, long-term economic growth. One particularly interesting industrial initiative is Project Beaver.

Project Beaver

A project that could establish a revolutionary hydrogen transportation ecosystem in Canada, Project Beaver would mean a $3.1 billion investment to build hydrogen-powered long-haul freight trucks and hydrogen refueling infrastructure in Canada, beginning in 2030. Tied to Hanwha’s CPSP bid, this project would create roughly 9,000 jobs in our country and set Canada up as a leader in the global hydrogen economy. 

Imagine, a hydrogen liquefaction facility in British Columbia, creating product for a network of refueling stations across BC and Alberta and for a hydrogen-powered commercial vehicle factory in Ontario. All things considered, closer ties would mean approximately $6.3 billion for investments in Canadian hydrogen and LNG across the provinces.

Liquified natural gas and other energy deals

Canada and Korea could soon see much more trade in the vital national energy sector as well. The Korean Gas Corporation has been a key investor for the first phase of LNG Canada and is planning to increase investment once Phase II is underway. After negotiations with the federal and BC governments, an announcement on the final investment figures will come later this year.

The Republic of Korea has so far invested $1.6 billion in LNG Canada and will be expanding that to $3.2 billion in the future. The country is also committing to importing 3.4 million tonnes of LNG annually from Canada, more than five times the current amount.

There are also plans in motion to increase imports of Canadian crude to Korea, taking this year’s expected import of 16 million barrels and increasing it to 20 million next year and into the future. In a time of growing trade barriers, Korea is tearing down walls. Energy trade will increase, in part, due to the Republic of Korea recently eliminating the 3 per cent tariff on Canadian crude oil imports. 

Hanwha Ocean’s CPSP proposal does more than offer a new set of state-of-art submarines. It asks Canadians to imagine a future of cooperative growth in clean energy, commodities exports and strong national defence. By leading to almost $100 billion in eventual GDP impact for Canada, Hanwha’s successful bid would form a huge part of our country’s nation-building aspirations and deliver lasting benefits to the economy and our industrial future. 

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of Hanwha and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of iPolitics