UK invests £90 million in Royal Navy Atlantic Net programme

The UK government has announced a £90 million investment in new drones, sensors and AI systems for the Royal Navy to protect undersea cables and energy networks and hunt Russian submarines in the North Atlantic.

The investment forms the first phase of the Royal Navy’s Atlantic Bastion programme. The new technology, known as Atlantic Net, will work alongside the Royal Navy’s crewed fleet to protect the nuclear deterrent and critical undersea infrastructure.

A new framework agreement with Hampshire-based company Ocean Infinity Solutions will support almost 200 skilled new jobs. The framework is due to be signed on 10 November 2026 and was announced at the International Sea Power Conference in Oslo, Norway.

Atlantic Net will see the Navy equipped with a new network of autonomous systems operating across the North Atlantic. These will include advanced sensors to help detect Russian submarines and nefarious activity, and uncrewed systems able to patrol the depths of the seas, hunting down threats.

The system will create a single surveillance service that will provide submarine-hunting warships and Astute-class submarines with earlier warning of threats and a clearer picture of activity beneath the surface.

Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard MP said:

"The threats beneath the North Atlantic are changing, and we are changing with them. This investment gives the Royal Navy new technology to find threats earlier and protect our critical infrastructure, while also backing British business."

He added:

"It shows that we’re getting on with the job of investing in our Armed Forces and strengthening our deterrence under the sea, to support our ultimate, nuclear deterrent."

The framework with Ocean Infinity Solutions will pave the way for £90m of investment, supporting almost 200 new skilled jobs and its immediate supply chain, building on the 38,700 jobs in South East England directly supported by MOD spend with industry.

Atlantic Bastion is the Royal Navy’s plan to create a hybrid naval force to hunt and track enemy submarines and protect the vast network of critical underwater infrastructure that connects and powers the UK and its allies, including communications cables and energy networks. Working alongside NATO and Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) allies, it will strengthen protection against interference, sabotage and hostile activity, with Atlantic Net increasing the scale, persistence and resilience of underwater surveillance.

The Royal Navy and Ocean Infinity Solutions will bring together maritime systems, underwater sensing, communications, remote operations and data services into a single capability directed by the Royal Navy.

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.