Germany’s Navy Rebuilds, Doubling Frigate Order and Adding New Base

By The Maritime Executive 2026-10-11 23:30:39

The German Navy is expanding its footprint and its fleet with the addition of a new North Sea naval base and the acquisition of four more anti-submarine frigates, both positioned to offset the capabilities of the Russian Navy. 

On Thursday, the German government agreed to double its purchase of TKMS' MEKO A-200 DEU frigate design from four hulls to eight, exercising a previously-agreed contract option. The A-200 replaces the canceled F-126 Niedersachsen-class frigate program, which was beset by delays, reportedly caused by shipyard software compatibility issues. Instead of six F-126 hulls at a projected cost of as much as $21 billion – a massive overrun – Germany's Bundeswehr will receive eight A-200s at a combined cost of about $13 billion. 

The vessels will be built in Germany by TKMS – a major factor for Defense Minister Boris Pistorius, who has emphasized the value of performing the work at two established shipyards in Hamburg. Saab is providing the vessel's sensor arrays and combat management system, Kongsberg will supply the Naval Strike Missile for surface warfare, and Atlas Elektronik is building its critically-important towed sonar array for submarine hunting. The ships have a unique triple-screw design for a combination of high speed (when running a centerline turbine engine and waterjet) and low noise trolling (when running twin diesel engines port and starboard). 

Also on Thursday, Pistorius announced plans to build a new naval station at the port of Emden, a few miles from the Dutch border on Germany's North Sea coast. He emphasized its "quick access to the Atlantic Ocean and the far north," where the Russian submarine threat is concentrated. Germany's navy has not had an established presence at Emden since the 1990s, and its return will give the service a strategic alternative to its main frigate base at Wilhelmshaven, about 35 miles to the east. 

European members of the NATO alliance are concerned at heightened levels of Russian activity at critical subsea infrastructure sites in the Baltic, North Sea, Irish Sea and Barents Sea. Anticipating the possibility of a "deniable" attack on EU critical infrastructure on the seabed, the UK and the EU are investing in better protection to detect and deter interlopers under the surface – and ASW frigates are key for hunting subs.

"This will enhance the deterrence capabilities of both Germany and NATO," Pistorius said in a press conference Thursday in Emden. "We currently have the smallest navy in the history of the German Armed Forces, yet simultaneously the largest and most comprehensive portfolio of tasks. Therefore, the navy must grow, and it will."  

Separately, Germany's newest entrant into naval shipbuilding – Rheinmetall, better known for its tanks and cannons – last week agreed to purchase the Mangalia shipyard complex in Romania. At present, the initial objective is to use the site to fulfil a four-ship order for the Romanian Navy. As the Mangalia yard is located on the Black Sea, it is not subject to the transit restrictions of the Montreux Convention. The treaty permits Turkey to limit warship access to the Turkish Straits during time of war – as it has done since the start of the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.