JAKARTA - Indonesian Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said on Tuesday the defense ministry had officially ordered three new submarines from a South Korean dockyard under Transfer of Technology (TOT) scheme.

"The contract had already been signed. There will be transition phase in the production process where Indonesia wants to build one in an Indonesian dockyard," the minister said in his office here.

Under the TOT scheme, one submarine will entirely be built in South Korea, one jointly produced by Indonesian and S. Korean engineers and another one built in Indonesia, the minister said.

He said that the three submarines are expected to improve the operation of the country's navy fleet.

Now operating two submarines, the Indonesian navy expects the delivery of three new submarines in 2015.