At the occasion of EURONAVAL 2018, Naval Group and ECA Group signed the letter of intent for a contract worth more than € 12 million for the supply of equipment (electric propulsion and variable speed drives), as well as associated spare parts, for submarines 5 and 6 of the Barracuda program, led by French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA). The contract will run for 53-month period and will end in 2023.

At the occasion of EURONAVAL 2018, Naval Group and ECA Group signed the letter of intent for a contract worth more than € 12 million for the supply of equipment (electric propulsion and variable speed drives), as well as associated spare parts, for submarines 5 and 6 of the Barracuda program, led by French Defence Procurement Agency (DGA). The contract will run for 53-month period and will end in 2023.

ECA Group Barracuda Order Euronaval 2018 ter
A French Navy's Suffren-class (Barracuda) submarine being assembled at the Naval Group shipyard in Cherbourg
(Credit: Naval Group)

Resulting from contracts successfully completed for the first four submarines of the program (Suffren, Duguay-Trouin, Tourville and De Grasse), this contract reinforces the position of ECA Group as supplier of electrical solutions for submarines and secures the supply of important equipment for the Barracuda program.

ECA Group's recent commercial successes in this sector, both in France and abroad position ECA Group for next tenders of the future 3rd generation nuclear ballistic missile submarines and the Australian submarines programs.

Compatible with any type of submarine design, ECA Group's propulsion and energy conversion solutions are sea proven and integrated on different platforms, nuclear or conventional, within several navies.

With high level of acoustic discretion, compatible in hostile environments (shock resistance, withstand of high temperatures), integrating complex electrical networks and using the latest technologies such as silicon carbide chips to guarantee unparalleled performance, ECA Group's solutions are now a reference.

Between 2017 and 2027, Barracuda-type SSNs will replace French Navy's current generation Rubis/Améthyste-class SSNs. The Barracuda program represents a vital contribution to the renewal of France's naval forces. The Barracuda submarine was designed to be quieter than the current Rubis class SSN, even at higher speeds, with increased underwater detection capabilities and a larger weapons payload.