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Kongsberg Maritime has been awarded a contract with Polish shipbuilder Remontowa Shipbuilding SA (RSB) to supply three shipsets of KONGSBERG HUGIN Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) systems and related HiPAP (High Precision Acoustic Positioning) positioning and communication systems for three newbuild warships for the Polish Navy.
The total contract value is in excess of €10 million, with the KONGSBERG equipment destined for the next three vessels (#4, #5 and #6) in the Kormoran II Mine-Countermeasures (MCM) vessel program. These three ships will be commissioned from 2026 to 2027. The three HUGIN/HiPAP shipsets will be delivered to the yard over the next four years to match with the new vessel delivery schedule.
This new contract follows on from previous contracts for the successful integration of HUGIN and HiPAP systems on the first three vessels in the Kormoran II program by Kongsberg Maritime and RSB.
KONGSBERG HUGIN AUVs are marine robots offering autonomous remote subsea search and survey capabilities. According to the company, the free-swimming AUVs have great manoeuvrability and stability for high-quality data collection. Hydrodynamic shape, accurate instruments and excellent battery capacity make these AUVs an ideal choice for governments and militaries worldwide.
The HUGINs aboard the Kormoran II vessels will benefit from:
- KONGSBERG HISAS 1032 Synthetic Aperture Sonar for long range, high-resolution imagery and bathymetry
- KONGSBERG EM2040 Multibeam Echosounder, an industry standard bathymetric mapping sonar
- UHD Color Camera with LED Lighting Panel for high-resolution optical imagery
- Forward-looking Sonar and altimeters for obstacle avoidance and trajectory planning
- Low magnetic-signature stinger launch & recovery system
- KONGSBERG Sunstone advanced Inertial Navigation System (INS) for industry leading autonomous position accuracy
Capable of fully autonomous operations without surface vessel support, HUGIN is also designed to work in conjunction with the HiPAP family of underwater positioning and navigation systems. This allows for high-accuracy position updates for the vehicle, as well as real-time communications for status, sensor quality assurance and on-the-fly mission replanning.
The Kormoran IIs class minehunters have a full load displacement of 850 tons, an overall length of 58.5m and can carry a crew complement of 45, with accommodation for seven additional personnel. The RSB’s own in-house design is a multi-toolbox concept, hybrid solution, minehunter where HUGIN AUV is one of underwater systems for stand-off MCM operations.
“These latest contracts are a true acknowledgment of a team effort over many years, and it shows that Kongsberg Maritime offers the right technology and solutions for the growing AUV market,” said Kongsberg Maritime SVP Stene Førsund. “We see that customers put AUVs into operation in many applications, and we believe that Autonomous Underwater Vehicles will be used in even more applications in the future. We have some big-name clients, but when the navy of a sovereign nation and fellow NATO member continues to put its trust in our technologies, it’s an inspiring moment for us.”
“These mine countermeasure vessels represent an important contract for Remontowa Shipbuilding as well as an important statement and reinforcement of Poland’s national security in a fast-changing world,” said Dariusz Jaguszewski, CCO at Remontowa Shipbuilding. “Kongsberg Maritime has already successfully delivered and commissioned HUGIN and HiPAP systems to us for the first three vessels in the Kormoran II program. The experience of nine years work with Kongsberg through these deliveries has been highly professional throughout and we are confident that the technologies to be delivered represent the state-of-the-art in underwater autonomy and mine countermeasure systems.”
