http://today.reuters.com/news/articleinvesting.aspx?view=CN&storyID=2006-12-12T192328Z_01_N11483542_RTRIDST_0_BRAZIL-ARMS-SUBMARINES.XML&rpc=66&type=qcna

New diesel U-boat for Brazil, nuclear goal fades

By Andrei Khalip

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil, Dec 12 (Reuters) – The Brazilian navy has chosen Germany’s HDW-ThyssenKrupp to build a new conventional submarine and upgrade its underwater fleet.

But the draft deal worth $1.4 billion means the postponement of the military’s goal of producing its own nuclear-powered sub.

Brazil’s five submarines are all based on the same firm’s diesel-electrical IKL-209 model. The new IKL-214 has an improved design but is far from the concept of a teardrop-shaped hull of a nuclear submarine built to operate for years undetected without resurfacing

South Korea has recently ordered 6 additional Type 214 boats to the original 3. Add to this the Brazilian order. Type 214 is also the most favorite candidate in Turkish Navy’s 6 AIP submarine contest. On the other hand there is this problem with Hellenic Navy’s first of four planned Type 214 boats, the Papanikolis.