Defence shipbuilder opens steel construction facility to support Swedish submarine program

Swedish defence shipbuilder Saab has opened a new steel facility in the town of Landskrona that will focus on welding and sheet metal work, mainly for the Swedish Royal Navy's two new Blekinge-class submarines.

The facility is located approximately 40 kilometres north of Malmö and covers 15,000 square metres on land leased from local real estate company Niam as part of an agreement between Niam and Saab signed in February of this year.

Saab said the facility will manufacture steel components that will be used in the construction of the future HSwMS Blekinge and HSwMS Skåne, which are scheduled for completion in 2027 and 2028, respectively. These will replace the submarine HSwMS Södermanland, which has been in service since 1989.

The submarines will be powered by conventional diesel-electric propulsion machinery and equipped with an air-independent propulsion system. The submarines will be of modular design to enable these to be adapted for specific missions and to more easily accommodate through-life upgrades.