The navy yesterday held a keel laying ceremony for a domestically built submarine prototype a year after work began.
The ceremony — which marked the completion of the vessel’s first phase of construction — was presided over by Republic of China Navy Commander Admiral Liu Chih-pin (劉志斌) and Cheng Wen-lon (鄭文隆), chairman of CSBC Shipbuilding Corp, which is responsible for the project, the navy said in a statement.
Liu called on all parties involved in the submarine’s construction to prioritize safety and maintain confidentiality to ensure that the project is completed on schedule.
Photo: CNA
The ceremony was closed to the media, and the navy did not provide any photographs or disclose where it was held for confidentiality reasons.
“Keel laying” is a term used in the shipbuilding industry to formally recognize the start of a vessel’s construction, even for submarines, which do not have keels.
In submarine building, the ceremony means the builder has successfully connected the submarine’s sail, the tower-like structure on the top of submarines, to its main hull and passed pressure tests, a navy source said.
The government has allocated NT$49 billion (US$1.76 billion) over seven years to build indigenous submarines, with the goal to boost Taiwan’s defense capabilities amid China’s growing military prowess.
The prototype is scheduled to be completed in 2024 and delivered to the navy in 2025.
The navy currently has four submarines in its fleet, two of which were purchased from the US in the 1970s and two that were bought from the Netherlands in the 1980s.
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