• The Oryu at the launch ceremony in Kobe. JSDF via Twitter
    The Oryu at the launch ceremony in Kobe. JSDF via Twitter
Close×

Japan has launched the first Soryu-class diesel-electric submarine equipped with lithium-ion batteries in a first for the program.

According to the Nikkei Asia News, the Oryu was christened with a bottle of sake before being launched into the water at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' Kobe shipyard.

 The 84-metre long Oryu is the eleventh submarine of the Soryu design, and the first to replace the previous lead-acid batteries with lithium-ion batteries supplied by GS Yuasa. The new batteries are reported to store twice the power as the older lead-acid batteries, representing a significant increase in the length of time the submarine can spend submerged.

Reports suggest the Oryu can reach speeds of 20 knots, with a displacement of 2,950 tons. It is slated for delivery to the Japenese military in 2020.

The Soryu class were overlooked for Australia's Collins replacement in 2016 in favour of French Shortfin Barracudas built by Naval Group, in what was at the time regarded as a blow to relations between Canberra and Tokyo. The Soryus were regarded as the favourite prior to a leadership spill in the Coalition government.

In recent months, the Abe government of Japan has been under pressure from Washington to buy more US military equipment. In this regard, the integration of Japanese batteries onto an indigenously-developed submarine is a statement of capability independence.

comments powered by Disqus