Absolutely. It was my idea from the beginning of the Attack deal turmoil. 6 SSK and 6 SSN. As french I wanted the whole to be french designed.
The French SSN requires refueling in France, so that wasn't workable for the Australians.
I find it quite surprising that many countries and even professional R&D organizations don't consider the viability of long term projects before starting them. Indian forces are so careful about such things. It shows how culture and institutional memories are so important to the success of anything.