Norway has announced it will partner with the United Kingdom to procure new frigates in what it calls the largest defence investment in its history—an estimated £10 billion ($13.5 billion) deal designed to reinforce the country’s maritime security.
The decision follows a competition in which Germany, France, Britain, and the United States pitched rival frigate models. Oslo ultimately sided with London, favouring BAE Systems’ Type 26 “City-class” design.
Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre underscored the importance of the purchase at a press briefing, stressing that frigates are central to safeguarding Norwegian sovereignty. Norway plays a pivotal role within NATO as the alliance’s “watchdog” over the North Atlantic, an area stretching two million square kilometres and hosting Russia’s nuclear-armed submarine fleet. The new warships will be tasked primarily with tracking Russian subs stationed on the Kola Peninsula, which borders Norway in the Arctic.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer hailed the agreement, framing it as both a strategic victory and an economic boost. The deal will bring the two nations’ navies closer together, creating a combined fleet of at least 13 anti-submarine frigates that will operate jointly across northern Europe. For Britain, the contract also reinforces its defence industrial base, particularly shipbuilding in Scotland, where the vessels will be constructed.
For Norway, a country of just 5.6 million people, the purchase marks a dramatic escalation of military spending, reflecting growing anxiety after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and persistent U.S. pressure—particularly from former President Donald Trump—for NATO allies to shoulder more of their own defence burdens. Oslo currently has four frigates in service and has signalled plans to buy at least five new ones, with an option for a sixth.
An added dimension of the agreement is industrial reciprocity: London has promised workshare arrangements that will funnel investments back into Norway’s defence sector, equal in value to the acquisition itself.
“This will be the largest procurement Norway has ever undertaken. We are now entering the final stage of contract negotiations,” Støre said, framing the decision as both a strategic necessity and a major step in deepening UK-Norwegian defence ties.
