Polish Nauta Shiprepair Yard selected for Swedish Navy’s SIGINT ship platform

Saab has chosen the Polish Nauta Shiprepair Yard based in Gdynia, Poland, to construct the ship platform for the special-purpose Signal Intelligence (SIGINT) vessel for the Royal Swedish Navy.

The Polish Nauta Shiprepair Yard is part of defence company Polish Armaments Group (PGZ).

Saab signed a new contract with the Swedish Defence Material Administration (FMV) for the design, construction and delivery of a special-purpose ship on 11 April.

The special-purpose ship order covers the period from this year to 2020, and has a total estimated value of SEK730m ($83.1m).

The Swedish Navy vessel is expected to sail to Saab’s shipyard in Karlskrona, Sweden, for the installation of signal intelligence equipment and final sea acceptance testing (SAT), after the new ship platform is built, launched and tested at the Polish shipyard Nauta.

Nauta Shiprepair Yard chairman Slawomir Latos said: “As Nauta we have access to a skilled workforce, needed infrastructure and have accumulated long-term experience in maritime projects.

“We are a company that is experiencing dynamic growth, places emphasis on innovation, and has forged ahead with adoption of new technology; we are very well prepared to participate in a project like the production of a special purpose vessel.”

The current contract is a result of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between the company and PGZ in October.

Saab Business Area Kockums head Gunnar Wieslander said: “I am very pleased how we have turned the initial intentions in the MoU into a tangible business with PGZ.

“Special purpose ships of this kind require both high availability and reliability. In Nauta, we have found a partner who can contribute in delivering a modern solution to our customer.”