Next-generation MCM systems for the Belgian and Netherlands Navies

Under a major joint program launched by Belgium and the Netherlands, work on the construction of 12 new mine countermeasures vessels is scheduled to begin in mid-2021. The ships will be equipped with ten robotic MCM payloads, or ‘toolboxes’, comprising around 100 drones. The shipbuilding will take place at yards in Brittany, France, and other work in Belgium and the Netherlands. The contract, awarded on 22 May and worth €2 billion, was won by Belgium Naval & Robotics, a consortium set up by Naval Group and ECA Group.