Balaena has signed a memorandum of understanding with Kongsberg Maritime to build the Arctic Hunter uncrewed anti-submarine vessel at its Birkenhead shipyard, aiming to have ships ready for military integration before the end of the decade, according to the company.
Simon Gillett, chief executive of Balaena, and Lisa Edvardsen Haugan, chief executive of Kongsberg Maritime, signed the agreement at Kongsberg Maritime’s offices in Norway on Wednesday.
Arctic Hunter is Kongsberg Maritime’s proposed answer to the Royal Navy’s emerging Type 92 anti-submarine warfare requirement, combining the firm’s commercial vessel designs with remote and autonomous technology and sonar and military communications from Thales to give persistent submarine detection in the High North. Balaena says the proven hull design and commercial shipbuilding approach are intended to speed up construction and delivery.
The group employs more than two thousand people across shipyards in the UK and Gibraltar, and its Birkenhead yard has four large dry docks, a non-tidal wet basin, fabrication facilities and a dedicated modular construction hall.
Gillett said: “We are delighted to be formalising our partnership with Kongsberg Maritime, bringing together two companies with complementary strengths and a shared ambition to deliver innovative maritime solutions.
“Arctic Hunter represents an exciting opportunity to combine Kongsberg’s world-leading maritime technology and vessel design expertise with Balaena’s established British shipbuilding capability.
“We have the facilities, the skilled workforce and the experience already in place to deliver complex vessels at pace. This partnership demonstrates how British shipyards can work alongside international technology leaders to deliver tomorrows’ naval capability.
“Just as importantly, this is about supporting British jobs, strengthening our maritime supply chains and investing in the future of our industry. Our apprenticeship programmes are constantly developing the next generation of engineers and shipbuilders, ensuring Britain retains the skills needed to build and support the vessels of tomorrow.”
Kongsberg Maritime unveiled Arctic Hunter for the Type 92 requirement earlier this week, saying the ships would be built at Birkenhead, and Thales signed its own agreement with Kongsberg Maritime to provide the anti-submarine mission system. Balaena, which is headquartered in Cornwall, bought the owner of Cammell Laird and has also pitched its yards for the new UK-Dutch amphibious ships. The agreement was signed as the Royal Navy and its Joint Expeditionary Force partners met in Oslo for the International Sea Power Conference and the Atlantic Future Forum.
