TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – The harbor acceptance tests (HAT) for Taiwan’s first indigenous submarine, the “Narwhal,” are 60% complete, with about a dozen items yet to be improved, the Navy said Tuesday (Sept. 10).

Navy Chief of Staff Chiu Chun-jung (邱俊榮) at a news conference denied reports claiming the submarine had at least 70 problems. He said the Narwhal has 10 issues to be corrected and would be handed over to the Navy next November. 

Chiu said the HAT phase was 50-60% complete and rejected reports that the project was running behind schedule, per Radio Taiwan International. The Narwhal will also face sea acceptance tests (SAT) before deployment.

The government has approved plans to build seven additional submarines modeled after the Narwhal, which CSBC Corporation, Taiwan produced in Kaohsiung. Chiu said Tuesday that the original plan to start with a batch of three submarines followed by two phases of two each had been revised.

Considering the learning curve, the capacity of the shipyard, and personnel planning, the construction will start with two submarines, with three in the second phase and another two during the final phase, according to the Navy chief.