German shipbuilding company NVL has partnered with UK’s Kraken Technology Group to accelerate the advancement and production of autonomous surface vessels via an Anglo-German joint venture (JV).
This collaboration seeks to meet the demand for uncrewed vessels for both defence and civilian purposes, including surveillance and infrastructure protection.
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The Anglo-German JV is poised to leverage NVL’s shipyard facilities at Blohm+Voss in Hamburg, Germany, as well as existing capacities in the UK.
This expansion aims to serve the German and European markets with a variety of autonomous surface vessels.
The JV will initially focus on smaller vessels, but plans are in place to extend capabilities to larger uncrewed platforms.
Manufacturing operations under this joint venture are expected to commence by the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2025.
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By GlobalDataNVL CEO Tim Wagner said: “The joint venture with Kraken offers us the opportunity to rapidly react to the latest requirements of our customers and to provide market-ready autonomous systems quickly and in high volumes.
“At the same time, by taking this step, we are expanding our role as a pioneer in the development of manned/unmanned teaming (MUM-T) concepts and are creating the right conditions for launching additional innovative solutions in this field. This also includes, for instance, our design concepts for the naval tender vessel NTV 130 as a drone mothership that could succeed the six tender vessels (the ELBE-class) currently operated by the German Navy.”
Following NVL’s recent investment in Kraken, the company has also secured options for further financial involvement in an anticipated funding round in Q4 2025.
Kraken Technology Group CEO Mal Crease said: “We are honoured to partner with NVL as we expand our ability to provide fully sovereign, autonomous maritime capabilities to our Allied nations. Working with NVL will allow exponential scaling of production and supply chain to meet growing threats through deployment of high-performance, multi-role, mass capabilities across our seas.”
In June this year, Kraken secured fundings from a consortium of strategic investors that will enhance its manufacturing capabilities, research and development, international scaling, and rapid prototyping initiatives.
