It was no secret or last minute change that Australia wanted diesel electric subs. France submitted a competitive tender to provide a diesel electric sub at a

It was no secret or last minute change that Australia wanted diesel electric subs. France submitted a competitive tender to provide a diesel electric sub at a particular price point, with much of the manufacturing being done in Australia, and was chosen over other bids on that basis. If France couldn’t provide that at the cost they bid then they shouldn’t have bid. There were other competitive bids from Japan and Germany both of which have proven diesel electric sub designs.