Introduction China’s nuclear submarine building programme is running on overdrive. [1] If China maintains its current pace of construction of 4.5 to six nuclear submarines per year for the next couple of decades, the number of nuclear boats in the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) inventory is set to swell substantially. Nuclear submarines are amongst the most complex and maintenance-heavy platforms ever made globally. They require capable bases with robust repair and maintenance facilities to ensure that they are combat-capable throughout their commissioned lives. While existing Chinese bases have evolved and grown over the years, they will fall short in their ability to home-port this rapidly expanding fleet unless augmented substantially. This report examines existing Chinese nuclear submarine bases and makes a prognosis on how the capacity shortfall is likely to be mitigated in the coming years.
Authors
- Attribution
- Monty Khanna, “China’s Nuclear Submarine Bases: A Stocktaking,” ORF Special Report No. 234 , October 2024, Observer Research Foundation.
- Pages
- 21
- Published in
- India
Table of Contents
- Introduction 2
- Northern Theatre Navy 3
- Location 3
- Existing Chinese Nuclear Submarine Bases 3
- Figure 1 General Location of First Submarine Base Jianggezhuang Northern Theatre Navy 3
- Early Construction. 4
- Figure 2 Layout of Facilities Jianggezhuang 4
- Underground Complex. 5
- Figure 3 Entrance to Tunnel Complex Jianggezhuang 5
- Dry Dock 6
- Figure 4 Dry Dock Jianggezhuang 6
- Wharfage. 7
- Figure 5 New Masonry Wharf Jianggezhuang 7
- Assets. 8
- Southern Theatre Navy 8
- Location. 8
- Figure 6 General Location of Second Submarine Base Longpo Southern Theatre Navy 8
- Facilities 9
- Figure 7 Layout of Facilities Longpo 9
- Wharfage 10
- Figure 8 Submarine Piers - Longpo 10
- Underground Cavern. 11
- Figure 9 Entrance to Tunnel Complex Longpo 11
- Degaussing Facility. 12
- Allied Infrastructure. 12
- Assets. 12
- Figure 10 Degaussing Complex Longpo 12
- Submarine Trial Base Xiaopingdao 13
- Figure 11 Submarine Trial Base Xiaopingdao 13
- Table 1 PLANs Nuclear Submarine Bases 14
- Expansion of Jianggezhuang. 15
- A Prognosis on Expanded Facilities 15
- Augmentation of Longpo. 16
- Creation of a Green-Field Nuclear Submarine Base. 16
- Specialised Role for Domestic Bases. 17
- Table 2 The Likely Future Base Architecture 17
- Overseas Bases 18
- Endnotes 19
- About the Author 20
