 | It has been suggested thatFriedrich Krupp Germaniawerft bemerged into this article. (Discuss) Proposed since January 2026. |
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| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Shipbuilding |
| Founded | 1838; 188 years ago (1838) |
| Founder | August Howaldt andJohann Schweffel [de] |
| Headquarters | , Germany |
Number of employees | 2,400 |
| Parent | ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems |
Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft GmbH (often abbreviatedHDW) was a Germanshipbuilding company, headquartered inKiel. It is now part ofTKMS (ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems). The Howaldtswerke shipyard was founded in Kiel in 1838 and merged withHamburg-basedDeutsche Werft to form Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) in 1968. The company's shipyard was formerly used byFriedrich Krupp Germaniawerft until the end ofWorld War II.
HDW was founded 1 October 1838 inKiel by engineerAugust Howaldt and entrepreneurJohann Schweffel [de] under the nameMaschinenbauanstalt und Eisengießerei Schweffel & Howaldt (Machine Factory and Iron Foundry Schweffel & Howaldt), initially buildingboilers.
The firststeam engine for naval purposes was built in 1849 forVon der Tann, agunboat for the small navy ofSchleswig-Holstein. In 1850, the company built an earlysubmarine,Brandtaucher, designed byWilhelm Bauer. It had been intended to build the boat inRendsburg butDanish forces advanced too close during theFirst Schleswig War, so construction was moved to Kiel.
The first ship built under the company's new nameHowaldtswerke was a small steamer, namedVorwärts, built in 1865. Business expanded rapidly as Germany became a maritime power and, by the start of the 20th century, around 390 ships had been completed.
In 1892, the company started a subsidiary inAustro-HungarianFiume on the coast of theAdriatic Sea. The subsidiary closed ten years later, but the yard remains open under the name3. Maj.
With Kiel being one of the two main bases of theKaiserliche Marine, the shipyard also benefited much from navy maintenance, repair and construction contracts. DuringWorld War I the company also built a number ofU-boats. By 1937, the company had yards in Kiel and in Hamburg, and was taken over by theKriegsmarine. DuringWorld War II, Howaldtswerke built 33VIIC U-boats in Hamburg and 31 in Kiel.
After the end of World War II, Howaldtswerke was the only major shipyard in Kiel that was not dismantled. The yard flourished during the "economic miracle" of the 1960s, with the construction of freighters and tankers, and again expanded by opening a shipyard in Hamburg. Howaldtswerke merged withDeutsche Werft in Hamburg in 1968, and the company took the new nameHowaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW). In 1982, HDW took out ads in American newspapers offering to sell the U.S. Navy the rights to build a Type 2000 submarine in the U.S. using American labor and materials.[1] Pressure from cheaper competitors inJapan andSouth Korea caused the closure of the Hamburg yard in 1985.
In March 2002, the American financial investor One Equity Partner (OEP) took over the majority of Babcock AG at HDW. Shortly after that, Babcock AG had to file for insolvency and called for a reserved transaction, but the OEP was able to avoid this.[2]
In January 2005, HDW became a subsidiary ofThyssenKrupp Marine Systems (TKMS), which also part-ownedKockums ofMalmö,Sweden and 24.9% ofHellenic Shipyards Co. ofSkaramangas,Greece. The group employs around 6,600 workers. In 2009, HDW worked withKockums andNorthrop Grumman to offer aVisby-class corvette derivative in the AmericanFocused Mission Vessel Study, a precursor to theLittoral combat ship program.
In July 2011, TKMS announced that it has confirmed an existing deal to sell the civilian shipbuilding assets of HDW Gaarden toAbu Dhabi MAR.[3][4][5][6]
| Class | Subclass | Order / in production | Client | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dakar class | — | 3 |  Israeli Navy | 3 ordered inJan 2022[8] |
| Type 214 | Reis class | 4 |  Turkish Navy | Part of a class of 6 submarines ordered inJul 2009, 4 still in production, made under licence by theGölcük Naval Shipyard in Turkey.[9][10] |
| Type 212CD | — | 6 |  Deutsche Marine | 2 ordered inAug 2021[11] 4 ordered inDec 2024[12] |
| 6 |  Royal Norwegian Navy | 4 ordered inAug 2021[11]2 ordered inDec 2025[13] | ||
| Type 218 | Invincible class | 2 |  Republic of Singapore Navy | InMar 2025, the Defence Minister announced a plan to purchase 2 additional submarines of this class[14] The order was confirmed in May.[15] |
| Total | 21 | |||
| Class | Subclass | Likely sales | Client | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type 214 | — | 6 |  Indian Navy | Class selected inJan 2025, as part of theProject P-75I, likely to be produced under licence in India.[16] |
| Total | 6 | |||
Ongoing bids and potential sales in new submarine purchase programmes.
| Class | Subclass | Potential sales | Client | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Type 209 | Type 209NG class | 3 |  Argentine Navy | In competition with Naval Group to supply submarines to Argentina.[17] |
| Type 209 | — | 4 |  Egyptian Navy | The Egyptian Navy is looking to replace its Romeo-class submarines, and the Type 209 is among the likely competitors.[18][19] |
| Type 209 | Type 209NG class | 4 |  Hellenic Navy | The Hellenic Navy is planning to procure 4 submarines, and one of the German models will be offered.[20] They will replace theGlafkos class (Type 209/1100) andPoseidon class (Type 209/1200) submarines. |
| Type 212 | Type 212CD class | |||
| Type 212 | U212NFS class | |||
| Type 218 | — | |||
| Type 212 | Type 212CD class | 3 | Deutsche Marine | According to theZielbild Marine 2035+ plan, the German will operate from 6 to 9 Type 212 CD, therefore up to 3 additional Type 212 CD[21] |
| Type 212 | U212NFS class | 2 |  Philippine Navy | The U212NFS is made in partnership withFincantieri.[22][23] |
| Type 212 | Type 212CD class | 12 |  Royal Canadian Navy | Canada unveiled its plan for the future of its navy, which includes up to 12 submarines. Norway and Germany offered a partnership with the Type 212CD.[24][25]The competitor is Hanwha Ocean.[26] |
| — | — | 2 |  Royal Malaysian Navy | Two planned to be procured between 2031 and 2035.[27] |
| Dolphin AIP class | — | 2 |  Royal Moroccan Navy | In 2025, Morocco expressed an interest to purchase 2 to 3 submarines.[28][29][30] |
| Type 209 | Type 209-1400 class | |||
| Up to | 32 | |||
| Class | Subclass | Order / in production | Client | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| K130 corvette | Braunschweig class - batch 2 | 4 | German Navy | 5 ordered in 2017, 4 remaining to be delivered.[31] |
| MEKO A-200DE | 3 | German Navy | 3 ordered in 2026.[32] | |
| MEKO A100 | Tamandaré class | 4 |  Brazilian Navy | 4 ordered inMar 2020, local production (4 additional planned)[33] |
| MEKO A-200EN | Al-Aziz class | 3 | Egyptian Navy | 6 ordered, 3 in service, 3 in production, partial local production.[34][35] |
| Total | 14 | |||
| Class | Subclass | Order / in production | Client | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MEKO A100 | Tamandaré class | 4 | Brazilian Navy | 4 additional planned[33] |
| MEKO A400 AMD | F127 class | 8 | German Navy | 8 planned to be purchased[36] |
| Total | 12 | |||
54°19′08″N10°09′20″E / 54.31889°N 10.15556°E /54.31889; 10.15556
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