Kongsberg wins biggest-ever missile contract from US Navy, Marines

PARIS — Norwegian defense firm Kongsberg won a five-year contract from the US Navy worth around US$900 million to supply anti-ship missiles, in what the company says is its biggest missile contract ever.

The company will provide its Naval Strike Missile, which is being installed on the Navy’s Littoral Combat Ships and Constellation-class frigates, the company said in a statement on Wednesday. The fixed-price contract is valued at 10 billion Norwegian kroner (US$896 million), with options that could lift the cumulative value to about 12 billion kroner.

The company will also supply the missile to the U.S. Marine Corps for the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System, or NMESIS .

Kongsberg said in September it would open a new missile production facility in Virginia , with the company citing demand for its Naval Strike Missile and the air-launched Joint Strike Missile. That follows the opening of a new factory for both missiles in Norway in June and plans to build a new missile plant in Australia ,

“This contract is an example of the strong demand we see for our strike missiles across NATO and allied nations, which is why we this year have opened a new missile factory in Norway and announced two facilities in Australia and the U.S.,” Eirik Lie, the president of Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, said in the statement.

The Naval Cruise Missile was first deployed by the Norwegian Navy in 2012, and has also been selected by NATO partners including Poland, the U.K., Spain and the Netherlands.

The subsonic missile has a range of more than 100 nautical miles or 185 kilometers, weights 407 kilograms and has a length of 3.96 meters or 13 feet, according to Kongsberg. The missile uses a high-resolution imaging infrared seeker for autonomous target recognition, and its sea-skimming capabilities and low signature allow it to survive enemy air defenses, the company says.

Rudy Ruitenberg is a Europe correspondent for Defense News. He started his career at Bloomberg News and has experience reporting on technology, commodity markets and politics.

巴黎——挪威国防公司康斯伯格赢得了美国海军一份价值约9亿美元的五年期合同，为其提供反舰导弹。该公司称，这是其有史以来最大的导弹合同。

该公司周三在一份声明中表示，将为其海军提供“海军打击导弹”，该导弹正在海军的濒海战斗舰和星座级护卫舰上安装。这份固定价格合同价值100亿挪威克朗（约合8.96亿美元），并包含可增购选项，累计价值可能达到约120亿挪威克朗。

该公司还将向美国海军陆战队提供导弹，用于海军陆战队远征舰拦截系统（NMESIS）。

康斯伯格公司9月份宣布将在弗吉尼亚州开设一家新的导弹生产厂，该公司表示，此举是由于其海军打击导弹和空射联合打击导弹的需求增加。此前，该公司已于6月份在挪威开设了一家生产这两种导弹的新工厂，并计划在澳大利亚新建一家导弹工厂。

“这份合同体现了北约及其盟国对我们打击导弹的强劲需求，这也是我们今年在挪威开设一家新的导弹工厂，并宣布在澳大利亚和美国新建两家工厂的原因，”康斯伯格防务与航空航天公司总裁埃里克·利在声明中表示。

挪威海军于 2012 年首次部署了海军巡航导弹，波兰、英国、西班牙和荷兰等北约伙伴国也选择了该导弹。

据康斯伯格公司称，这款亚音速导弹射程超过100海里（185公里），重407公斤，长3.96米（13英尺）。该公司表示，该导弹采用高分辨率成像红外导引头进行自主目标识别，其掠海飞行能力和低特征使其能够突破敌方防空系统。

鲁迪·鲁伊滕贝格是《防务新闻》的欧洲记者。他的职业生涯始于彭博新闻社，拥有报道科技、大宗商品市场和政治方面的经验。