Page 35: of Marine Technology Magazine (May 2019)

Brazil´s Riachuelo

Submarine – S 40

By Claudio Paschoa

Brazil is a country with a coastline over 7,000 km long, defense industry. An essential part of this investment is the bathed to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. Along this coast- Submarine Development Program (PROSUB). The National line and offshore is where the country develops its ? sheries Defense Strategy, launched in 2008, established that Brazil activities, maritime trade and the exploitation of a variety of needed to have a major naval force, including a submarine biological and mineral resources. The incredible environmen- with nuclear propulsion. In that same year, a technology trans- tal and ? nancial wealth found in these waters, and under the fer agreement was signed between Brazil and France in the seabed gave way to the term - Blue Amazon – relating to the area of submarine construction. The program is enabling the

Amazon Jungle. The Blue Amazon of? cially covers an area production of four conventional submarines (S-BRs), which of 3.5 million square kilometers. However, Brazil is calling will be added to the ? eet of ? ve ageing and obsolete conven- on the United Nations to expand its borders to the limits of tional submarines, and the building of the ? rst Brazilian sub- the continental shelf, which should raise the sea area to about marine with nuclear propulsion (SN-BR), all made in Brazil 4.5 million square kilometers - equivalent to half of Brazil’s at a purpose build state-of-the-art Navy shipyard on the south land area. coast of the state of Rio de Janeiro.

To protect this natural heritage and guarantee Brazilian Of the four conventional submarines already being built, sovereignty at sea, the Brazilian Navy (BN) invests in the ex- the ? rst to be launched was the Riachuelo (S40). Now go- pansion of its naval force and in the development of a viable ing through a ? tting out phase before beginning ocean trials,

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