Chapter 764 - 350: On Sea Power and the Shipbuilding Plan (Part 3)

The construction costs for just 5 ten-thousand-ton-class capital ships can reach a maximum of 4 million pounds. Adding 10 more ships of 7000 tons with smaller tonnage but higher quantity, the total funding required for this 5-year shipbuilding plan is approximately between 7 million pounds and 8 million pounds, which is between 175 million pessetas and 200 million pessetas.

But that’s not all; this is only the cost to build these 15 capital ships.

Other expenses include daily training for the soldiers, the use and maintenance of the ships, and various material expenditures, which compared to the construction costs are also a considerable amount.

According to estimates from the Ministry of the Navy, the total cost of this 5-year shipbuilding plan will exceed 250 million pessetas, with a minimum possible limit of compression down to 253 million pessetas.

Once these 15 capital ships are fully commissioned into naval service, just the annual use and maintenance costs of these ships, combined with naval personnel salaries and other material expenditures, will require a further expenditure of tens of millions of pessetas annually.

This is why the Navy is often said to be a money burner; besides construction costs, other expenses are also significant outlays.

Given the current good state of Spain’s finances, this allows for bearing such huge military expenses. Since it’s a 5-year shipbuilding plan, this means the expense is a total of 5 years’ naval budget.

million pessetas divided over the years actually only amounts to slightly more than 50 million annually for the naval budget. For Spain’s current finances, an annual increase of 50 million pessetas in the military budget is indeed not a significant figure.

According to the statistics of the Spanish Cabinet Government, in the entire year of 1889, the total fiscal revenue of the Spanish Government reached 13.221 billion pessetas, a new high in fiscal income.

On one hand, it’s because the economy and industries in Spain are quite prosperous, and the war hasn’t affected domestic economic development at all.

On the other hand, Spain has earned a lot of income from the colonies, whether through rubber trade or the development of various plantations, all bringing ample profits for Spain.

The only ones who have it tough are the indigenous peoples in the African Colony, but under Spain’s current economic and fiscal prosperity, no one cares about their sacrifices.

Although the total fiscal expenditure reached 12.021 billion pessetas, the government still has a fiscal surplus of 1.19 billion pessetas; spending 50 million pessetas on naval military expenses annually is no big deal.

By 1890, the Spanish Government had cleared most of its foreign debts, with the remaining ones expected to be paid within two years.

This is undoubtedly a good thing for Spain, as being debt-free allows for new rounds of loans for any significant future construction projects.

Benefiting from domestic economic prosperity, when facing large-scale construction, the Spanish Government can gather more funds.

According to estimates from the fiscal department, if major events occur or if the government needs major construction, Spain can quickly raise over 1 billion pessetas.

If the fundraising period is extended, it may even increase by another 500 million pessetas beyond the 1 billion pessetas base.

This is extremely important for Spain. Although it’s not comparable to France’s scary figure of repaying a 50 billion franc indemnity within a few years, for Spain, this is already a huge progress.

The Cabinet Government approved the naval military budget for this shipbuilding plan within a few days, marking the official commencement of the 5-year shipbuilding plan.

The Spanish Royal Family and Government’s successive announcements regarding their attention to naval plans immediately attracted the attention of shipyards throughout Spain and even in all of Europe.

Many famous shipyards are eager and raring to go; they won’t miss this huge reward.

Besides the reward of up to 10 million pessetas for designing a new type capital ship, the design for the 7000-ton-class secondary capital ship can also receive a reward of 5 million pessetas.

For Spain’s major shipyards, they are already familiar with the design requirements for Spain’s next-generation capital ships.

Simply put, it’s about three things: faster speed, stronger firepower, and thicker armor protection.

Focusing on just one of these, whether it’s increasing the steam turbine set to enhance power, or increasing the number of guns to strengthen firepower, or simply increasing armor thickness, isn’t difficult for major shipyards.

Even achieving just two of these can be done. As long as one can be sacrificed while considering the other two, one can build a ship with superior performance but obvious deficiencies.

Clearly, the Spanish Navy doesn’t want ships with apparent deficiencies. They want ships with comprehensive development, which is the most challenging aspect.

To enhance firepower, either increase the number of gun turrets or enlarge the gun calibers. Either option requires increasing the ship’s tonnage, which will affect speed.

Armor protection capacity is similar. Either layer steel plates to make the armor thicker, but this will likewise increase the ship’s tonnage, making it slower.

Naval design can’t just layer on one dimension, which requires bidding shipyards to have breakthroughs in speed, firepower, and armor dimensions.

If there are turbines with more power or iron materials with stronger protection and lighter weight, they can meet the Spanish Navy’s requirements.

But technological breakthroughs aren’t easily achieved unless shipyards invest at all costs in technology and materials research. Otherwise, it can only rely on accumulated time.

It’s no exaggeration to say that whichever shipyard’s ship design meets the Spanish Navy’s requirements, it represents that shipyard’s level reaching the world’s top tier.

Whether for the financial rewards offered by Spain or the technical challenge, these shipyards are worthy of going all out for it.