ATHENS - The Hellenic Navy's Type 209 submarine, HS Okeanos, was re-delivered to the service on October 20 at Skaramangas after having completed its upgrade to Type 214 standard under the Neptune II modernization program. The upgrade work was undertaken at Hellenic Shipyards, which is owned by Germany's ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS), itself the successor to Howaldtswerke Deutsche-Werft (HDW), the original builder of the Okeanos.
The Neptune II midlife modernization program dates back to May 31, 2002, when Greece awarded a EUR821 million ($1.03 billion) to TKMS for upgrade work on three of the Hellenic Navy's eight Type 209 submarines (a second batch of four submarines referred to as the Poseidon-class). The HS Okeanos was the first submarine to begin the program, entering the Hellenic Shipyards in 2004. HS Poseidon and HS Amphitrite were also scheduled to be modernized. The upgrade program included insertion of a 6.5m-long air-independent propulsion section, as well as installation of a new sonar array, combat management system and Harpoon missile launch capability.
But in 2009, as relations with TKMS deteriorated amidst claims of non-payment the cash-strapped Hellenic Navy opted to terminate the Neptune II program as a means of shifting needed funds towards procuring two new-build Type 214 submarines. Yet within a year of cancelling the program Greece' financial and economic situation plunged spectacularly, requiring significant external financial supports rising up to EUR380 billion that allowed Greece to stave off bankruptcy. As a result the Navy continues to await construction on its final two Type-214 submarines with the possibility remaining that the ships will never be acquired.
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