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Pakistan - SSN Nuclear Submarine

The earliest news of Pakistan's nuclear submarine project was in 2006 when General Musharraf announced that Pakistan now has the technology to build nuclear submarines. Just as India has leased SSNs from Russia, Pakistan reportedly tried to obtain an SSN from China in 1989, but nothing came of this effort. Pakistan might not be able to afford an SSN due to high maintenance cost. Even if Pakistan spends lavishly on defense, China would first need an additional SSN for lease. But this might not be entirely impossible in the near future.

The Pakistan Navy pushed forward a proposal to build its own nuclear submarine as a direct response to the Indian nuclear submarine program. The thinking of the military establishment of Pakistan seems hinged [or un-hinged] on one point - and that is to somehow attain parity with India - even in cases when such a parity is almost imposible. Some military experts believed that Pakistan had the capability of building a nuclear submarine and was ready to build such a fleet. Pakistan's Navy has cautiously monitored the status of India’s development of nuclear submarines, and reserved the right to take appropriate measures in response.

Finally in 2012, the Navy announced it would start work on and construction of a nuclear submarine to better meet the Indian Navy's nuclear threat. According to the Navy, the nuclear submarine is an ambitious project, and will be designed and built indigenously. However, the Navy stressed that "the project completion and trials would take anywhere from between 5 to 8 years to build the nuclear submarine after which Pakistan would join the list of countries that has a nuclear submarine."

Pakistan's indegenous nuclear submarine may be based on the Qing Class Chinese SSK, which Pakistan is believed to receive 6 units of. Given the size of the Qing Class (5,000-6,000 tons), the submarine is suited as the basis for a Pakistani SSN / SSBN. Pakistan may be seeking a smaller sized nuclear sub that sacrifices speed for simplicity and ease of maintenance. The Pakistani subs may utilize an all-electric propulsion system that is charged by the nuclear power plant.

Such an arrangement makes sense for the following reasons:

1. Pakistani SSNs/SSBNs do not need to keep up with a carrier group or large-scale task force; They are likely to operate solo, making the loss of possibly 3-5 knots in speed less relevant.
2. The Qing Class (and other SSKs) already have a highly advanced electric propulsion system. The Pakistani nuclear submarine would thus be a replacement of the diesel engine power generation with a nuclear power plant.
3. Electric propulsion has traditionally lagged behind hydraulic propulsion, but recent advances in the former has significantly reduced the gap in performance between the two.
4. Sets up future improvements in technology, saving on investment in hydraulic submarine propulsion which would have been a technological dead-end investment.
5. Nuclear weapons on diesel submarines don't make sense, as the boat has to surface from time to time.
6. Pakistan does not require intercontinental range missiles, since the main adversary is conveniently located nearby, and so does not require large submarines such as those of the USA and Russia. INS Arihant can carry 12 K-15 Sagarika missiles with a range of up to 750 km. Or four K-4 missiles can be deployed on it, which have a range of up to 3,500 km.

Taking a closer look at the possible type of nuclear power plant to be utilized, it may be a small pressurized light water reactor. Such a reactor would require some R&D given that Pakistan does not have much expertise in light water reactors, and because the need for miniaturization. However, given Chinese expertise and potential assistance, this should not prove to be a difficult challenge to overcome. Moreover, Pakistan has a highly qualified and competent nuclear establishment that should be able to meet the challenge.

China's first export market in defense is always Pakistan. Since any possible naval nuclear reactors will have input from China (for obvious reasons), Pakistan can build allied components and then gradually learn along the way, with no need to start from scratch. The Chinese might assist Pakistan in making the reactor more sea worthy, reducing the noise that pumps and various other machinery generates (however their own track record with noise reduction, particularly in their nuclear subs, isn't so great).

But Pakistan has never designed any civilian nuclear reactor(for energy purpose) let alone a highly miniaturized naval variant of it that can sustain higher degrees of shock tolerances required for a naval reactor. India has developed various types of indigenous power reactors. The 83 MW PWR India made for Arihant is used in only 3 Arihant class boats. Brazil, Argentina and Iran have designed nuclear reactors ranging from approx 100 MW to 400 MW, and Pakistan is not far behind these countries in nuclear science. So the possibility is there, though Pakistan has neither invested in the research of civilian energy reactors nor does Pakistan have any public or private sector enterprise that can provide various systems used in nuclear plants.

Another potential help may have been the transfer of technology from France with the Agosta 90B submarine purchase. A number of key technologies were transferred including design and development skills and tools. Building of hulls and experience with Western subsystems, many of which are used in the French nuclear submarines would help the Pakistani SSN / SSBN, if it already has not found its way to the Chinese Qing Class.

In sum, while India was preparing her indigenous nuclear submarines, Pakistan is well underway in making an equivalent capability upgrade. The time-frame given in the media is 5-8 years. Argentina acquired the JF-17, and Argentina may be interested in some form of partnership in the (nuclear submarine) project.. However, there is very little to go by in terms of Argentina-Pakistan relations, and far more in terms of Brazil-Pakistan, where collaboration has gone to the extent of transfer of technology and weapon systems such as the MAR-1s and MAA-1As, and is likely to include the A-Darter and/or the MAA-1Bs in the future.