SEONGNAM: South Korea's Hanwha Ocean has pitched offers to build submarines to Canada, the Philippines and Poland, a company official said on Wednesday, as the country pushes to become one of the world's top four defence exporters. Canada is studying potential builders for new submarines and has expressed interest in Hanwha Ocean among other foreign rivals, Kim Seung-min, leader of Hanwha Ocean's naval and special ship overseas marketing team, told Reuters in an interview, without naming the competitors. "We are now checking on our shoelaces at the start line before the race kicks off," Kim said on the sidelines of the country's biggest defence show, Seoul International Aerospace and Defense Exhibition (ADEX). South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol has pledged to step up efforts to boost weapons exports and secure cutting-edge defence technologies as he aims to build the industry into one of the world's four largest exporters.