KIEL (dpa-AFX) - The submarine builder Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems has regretted the award of the contract for four new submarines for the Netherlands to France. "With the 212CD submarine design already available, the Netherlands would not only have benefited from cost efficiencies thanks to the cooperation with Germany and Norway, but also enabled a timely replacement for the Walrus-class submarines," the company announced on Friday. The Dutch Ministry of Defense had previously announced the decision in favor of the French company Naval Group.

Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, as the world market leader in the field of conventional submarines, is well positioned for the coming years and the order books are well filled, the company added. The current decision in the submarine program of the Netherlands has no impact on the economic situation or on strategic decisions at Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems./moe/DP/jha