The S-80 was completely designed in Spain. It uses an anaerobic propulsion system that is unique in the world, based on reformed bio-ethanol and fuel cells, which gives it notable advantages over systems developed in other shipyards.

Navantia has launched its marketing campaign for the new Series 80 class submarine. Currently, the company is building four such submarines at its shipyard for the Spanish Navy, with an estimated completion date of early 2013.

The Spanish builder wants to convert its Cartagena Shipyard into a recognized center of design and construction for submarines using Air Independent Propulsion, or AIP.

 The anaerobic propulsion developed by the company for these ships is based on a reformer, which converts bio-ethanol into hydrogen, as well as a fuel cell, that converts this into electricity. This propulsion represents an important improvement over those developed by other shipyards, such as Stirling engines, MESMA or metallic hydride technology, both in terms of range and submerged endurance.

Navantia has already been visited by several foreign delegations, interested in the characteristics of the ships and the development of the program. Once the first of these submarines is operative, the company will enter the S80 in the bidding contests of various navies.