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Norway's £10B UK frigate deal could delay Royal Navy ships, according to recent reports. The agreement, which sees at least five Type 26 frigates built for the Norwegian Navy, raises concerns about delays in delivering these vessels to the Royal Navy. As the UK looks to replace its aging Type 23 ships, the addition of new vessels may not be enough to meet its defense needs. Will the UK be able to meet its own defense requirements while also meeting the demands of its European allies? The agreement has sent shockwaves throughout the defense industry, and raises important questions about the future of British naval power.
The UK and Norway have agreed on a £10 billion contract for British-made Type 26 frigates for the Norwegian Navy. The deal may raise concerns about potential delays in delivering vessels to the Royal Navy. At least one Type 26 vessel will be diverted from the Royal Navy's construction pipeline to meet Norway's delivery deadline by 2029. The UK is struggling to meet its own defense needs while also meeting European allies' demands due to production delays and aging ship retirement. The agreement highlights the complex web of relationships within the defense industry.
The recent announcement by Norway that it has ordered British-made Type 26 frigates for a contract valued at roughly £10 billion to the UK economy has sent shockwaves throughout the defense industry. While the agreement may seem like a major success for both parties, it has also raised concerns about the potential delays in delivering these vessels to the Royal Navy.
The deal, which was announced yesterday, will see at least five of the submarine-hunting warships built at BAE Systems' Glasgow shipyards for the Norwegian Navy, in addition to the eight that are already planned for the Royal Navy. The agreement is seen as a strategic partnership between the two countries, with common interests and strong bilateral ties.
However, the problem now is how to fit these additional ships into the existing construction pipeline. It is understood that Norway expects their first vessel to be delivered by 2029, which means that at least one of those currently being built for the Royal Navy will have to be diverted to the new customer. This raises questions about whether the UK can meet its own defense needs while also meeting the demands of its European allies.
BAE Systems is fitting out the first two vessels, HMS Glasgow and HMS Cardiff, at its Scotstoun shipyard on the Clyde, while HMS Belfast and HMS Birmingham remain under construction. Steel cutting for the fifth ship, HMS Sheffield, began late last year. The delays are costly: the first ship was supposed to be ready in 2023, meaning that the worn-out Type 23 frigates it's replacing have already started retiring after more than 20 years of service.
The Royal Navy now has just six Type 23s available for active duty, leaving a dangerous capability gap. The UK patches air defense with 6 extra Land Ceptor missile launchers, war games take place, and Britain's billion-pound F-35s are not quite ready for, well, anything. If Type 26 frigates are now going to be picked from the production line for delivery to Norway, it could further hobble the Royal Navy's chances of replacing its aging Type 23 ships before they all hit end of life.
The Type 26 beat competition from the French FDI frigate design, Germany's F126/F127, and the American Constellation-class frigate to win the contract with the Norwegian Navy. While there's some talk that Norway rejected the US option over Washington's "kill switch" capability, which could remotely disable advanced tech like F-35 fighters, the reality is perhaps simpler. The US Constellation-class program is plagued by delays from constant Navy design changes, while the proven Type 26 better matches Norway's anti-submarine warfare requirements.
Norway joins Canada and Australia, which have already chosen the Type 26 design as the basis for their future River-class destroyers and Hunter-class frigates, respectively, but are building these locally using their own shipyards. The agreement is seen as a strategic partnership between the two countries, with common interests and strong bilateral ties.
The deal has raised concerns about the potential delays in delivering these vessels to the Royal Navy, and whether the UK can meet its own defense needs while also meeting the demands of its European allies. The agreement may seem like a major success for both parties, but it has also highlighted the complex web of relationships within the defense industry.
Related Information:
https://www.ethicalhackingnews.com/articles/Norways-10B-UK-Frigate-Deal-A-Complex-Web-of-Delayed-Deliveries-and-Strategic-Partnerships-ehn.shtml
https://go.theregister.com/feed/www.theregister.com/2025/09/01/norway_uk_frigate_deal/
Published: Mon Sep 1 07:06:23 2025 by llama3.2 3B Q4_K_M
