2028, with the first two boats to be in service by 2031. However, in October 2021 it was reported that this timeline was no longer feasible. Instead, the Dutch Ministry of Defence signalled that the envisaged dates would have to be "substantially adjusted", possibly incorporating a life extension refit for the existing Walrus-class boats. In April 2022 it was announced that two of the Walrus-class boats would be extended in service until the mid-2030s and that in order to do so safely a different maintenance approach would have to be adopted for the entire fleet with one of the four existing boats to be decommissioned in the short-term, followed by a second boat later. On 16 November 2022 it was revealed that Walrus will be the first boat to be decommissioned sometime in 2023. The revised schedule for the construction of the new replacement boats would likely see the first two vessels entering service in the 2034 to 2037 timeframe. Contenders The Ministry of Defence has shortlisted three bidders: Damen Group and Saab Group announced that they have partnered from 2015 to jointly develop, offer and build next-generation submarines that are able to replace the current Walrus-class submarines. It was announced on 1 June 2018 that their design will be derived from the A26 submarine. The proposed submarine is around long with a diameter of . Furthermore, the weight will be around 2900 tonnes, complementing 34 to 42 people. The boat's armament includes 6 torpedo tubes and 1 multi-mission lock which can be used to deploy special forces. Naval Group announced that it is offering its newest submarine class, the Barracuda-class, as replacement for the Walrus-class. A version of the "Shortfin" diesel-electric variant Barracuda-class will be offered, rather than the nuclear variant used by the French Navy. ThyssenKrupp Marine Systems is planning to offer a Type 212CD submarine. Spain's Navantia's S-80 was not accepted as a contender following the B-letter in 2019. In 2022 the Spanish Ministry of Defence send a letter to the Dutch DMO for Navantia to be allowed to put in an offer following the announcement that a RFQ will be sent to the remaining contenders, in which some of the requirements have changed. It is rumoured that the request was denied by DMO. On 16 November 2022 the RFQ was sent out to the three remaining shipyards. It is expected they will submit their bids around