UK and Norway agree Royal Navy mine-hunting mothership deal

Britain has confirmed it will buy three Norwegian standardised vessels as motherships for the Royal Navy’s uncrewed mine-hunting systems, with the first due in 2031 and an option for three more, according to the Ministry of Defence.

Wes Streeting and Tore O. Sandvik confirmed the commitment at the Atlantic Future Forum in Oslo on Thursday. The agreement sees Britain join Norway’s P1118 Standardised Vessel Programme, with the ships, known in the Royal Navy as Offshore Support Vessels, delivered through the government-to-government Maritime Capability Partnership Framework between the two countries.

The MoD says the globally deployable ships will make the detection and disposal of sea mines safer, quicker and more effective, keep sailors further from danger and support anti-submarine warfare on NATO’s northern flank. An additional £90 million was set aside in the Defence Investment Plan for the purchase, and the deal forms part of the Type 26 export agreement with Norway.

Streeting said: “This deal strengthens our ability to protect freedom of navigation, which is critical to our security and our economy.

“By using the biggest sustained increase in defence spending since the Cold War to put the latest modern technology in the hands of our Sailors, we are helping to keep them safe and ensuring they have the tools to protect our shores.

“This agreement also shows how the UK-Norway partnership helps both our countries, and our allies, meet the challenges of a more dangerous world.”

Sandvik said: “The United Kingdom’s procurement of Norwegian Standardised Vessels will further strengthen our strategic partnership, rooted in the Lunna House agreement. Operating similar platforms will enhance our navy-to-navy cooperation and further improve our ability to operate seamlessly together, protecting and safeguarding NATO’s northern flank.”

The Royal Navy’s ships will be drawn from the same family as Norway’s future fleet, after the Norwegian Defence Materiel Agency picked Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace and Salt Ship Design earlier this year to design up to 28 standardised vessels for the Royal Norwegian Navy, replacing more than ten existing classes with one common, modular platform, and Norway has also agreed to deliver standardised vessels to Lithuania.

Alongside the deal, the MoD announced an £8.8 million contract for TKMS ATLAS UK to maintain and repair the Royal Navy’s autonomous mine-hunting systems, including the underwater and surface vessels and their command and control equipment, for an initial three and a half years, sustaining around 40 UK jobs.

The MoD said the threat from sea mines has been brought into sharp focus by Iran’s illegal mining of the Strait of Hormuz, which has caused major disruption to global energy trade. Norway agreed its £10 billion purchase of Type 26 frigates in December 2025, Britain’s biggest warship export by value, which the MoD says supports 4,000 jobs across the UK supply chain, including more than 2,000 at BAE Systems’ Glasgow shipyards.

Sources

This article was drafted with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. Company claims are reported as claims. Cover image is AI-generated.