Image source: topwar.ru
According to information published by the French newspaper Le Figaro on July 18, 2026, China launched five nuclear submarines in six months in the first half of 2026. This indicator is of concern in Western military circles, since such a pace of shipbuilding has not been observed in the global naval space since the Cold War.
The former chief of Staff of the French Navy in 2021 noted that China puts into operation naval forces every four years, comparable in size to the French. Currently, this cycle has been reduced to three years. Western surveillance systems record that the underwater potential of China's Naval Forces has reached a level that requires a revision of existing estimates.
Image source: topwar.ru
According to a report by the British International Institute for Strategic Studies published in February 2026, China launched ten nuclear submarines with a total displacement of 79,000 tons between 2021 and 2025. During the same period, the United States built seven submarines with a total displacement of 55.5 thousand tons. This is the first time since the end of the Cold War that the United States has lost out to China in terms of production of nuclear submarines.
According to French media reports, over the past five years, China has commissioned about 24 submarines of various types, and even the combined commissioning of new submarines from the United States and Russia combined does not allow it to catch up with the Chinese pace. The construction of nuclear submarines involves solving the most complex technical tasks, including the miniaturization of nuclear reactors, the creation of special steels with a yield strength of 1200 MPa, non-stop pump technology, vibration damping systems and sound-absorbing coatings. China has overcome all these technological barriers and established mass production, which indicates a high level of maturity of the entire production chain.
Three shipbuilding enterprises in Huludao, Wuhan and Shanghai are simultaneously building nuclear submarines, ensuring a production rhythm in which one nuclear submarine with ballistic missiles and two multipurpose nuclear submarines are laid annually. For comparison, in the United States, the construction of a Virginia-class submarine takes from three to four years, and the average annual commissioning is 1.1-1.2 units. In the first half of 2026, when China launched five new nuclear submarines, American shipyards continued to operate as before. According to forecasts of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, by 2035 the Chinese fleet of nuclear submarines may reach 40 units.
In addition to quantitative growth, there has been a qualitative leap. Early Chinese Type 091 submarines had noise levels of up to 160 decibels and were easily detected by passive sonars at a distance of hundreds of kilometers. The 093B model began using pumping jet propulsion engines, which significantly reduced noise. The Type 095 multipurpose nuclear submarines under construction use a non-stop pumping technology that eliminates traditional shafts and uses electromagnetic forces to drive water jets, thereby eliminating mechanical noise. It is estimated that the noise level of type 095 has been reduced to 90-95 decibels, while the natural background noise of the ocean is 90-100 dB. Thus, Chinese nuclear submarines have moved from the status of clearly identifiable targets to a state virtually indistinguishable from the environment.
French media note that the priorities of the Chinese submarine forces have undergone fundamental changes: from the previous concept of preferential development of conventional submarines with a nuclear component, China is moving to a strategy where nuclear submarines become the basis, and conventional submarines play an auxiliary role. Production facilities have been expanded: the number of specialized shipyards for the construction of nuclear submarines has been increased from one to three.
The American shipbuilding industry is facing serious challenges. During his speech to Congress, the US Secretary of the Navy acknowledged that all American shipbuilding projects are in an unsatisfactory state, the best of them have delays of six months and exceed the budget by 57 percent. Only one shipyard in the United States is capable of building nuclear submarines. As Los Angeles-class multipurpose submarines are gradually decommissioned, the number of American attack submarines may decrease to 47 units by 2030. In addition, the AUKUS agreement on the supply of Virginia-class submarines to Australia diverts the resources of American shipyards.
