Thirty-one days after Sweden signed for four new frigates, the first of them was in production in a French shipyard. Naval Group cut steel for FDI Luleå, the first Defence and Intervention Frigate for the Royal Swedish Navy, at its Lorient yard on Oct. 1, 2026. The contract for all four ships was signed on Aug. 31, 2026, and Naval Group says the first delivery is scheduled for 2030.
The ceremony marks the start of fabrication on a ship class Sweden is buying from France, with the remaining hulls to follow over the first half of the next decade. Luleå gives its name to the class.
Naval Group announced the milestone in a release dated Oct. 2, 2026. “Only one month after the signing of the contract for the procurement of four frigates,” it says, “the first FDI Luleå is already in production in Lorient, with the first delivery scheduled in 2030.”
According to the release, the ceremony was led by Rear-Admiral Fredrik Lindén, head of naval systems at the FMV, the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration, in the presence of Caroline Vicini, Sweden’s ambassador to France.
A €4.3 billion order for four ships
The French Ministry of the Armed Forces set out the terms of the deal when it was signed. Its news item of Sept. 1, 2026 describes “Sweden’s €4.3 billion contract for four defence and intervention frigates (FDI),” signed between the FMV and Naval Group, for “the four future Luleå-class frigates.” Per the ministry, delivery of the first frigate is scheduled for 2030, “with the remaining three to follow by 2034.”
The ministry describes the FDI as bringing air defense, anti-surface warfare and anti-submarine warfare capabilities together “on a compact 4,500-tonne platform,” and says the ships are “designed for operations in contested environments.” For Sweden, the ministry says, the new warships will provide “advanced sea-based air defence.”
Naval Group’s own description leans on the hull. “With its signature inverted bow, the FDI has proven in high sea states its superior stability,” the company says, adding that the vessel has demonstrated “anti-submarine and anti-air capabilities” in long-endurance and high-intensity operations. Those are the builder’s claims about the class in service with other navies; Luleå itself has only just entered production.
Thirteen FDIs for three navies
Sweden is the third customer for the design. The French ministry says Amiral Ronarc’h, the first of five FDIs ordered by France, was delivered to the French Navy in October 2025, and that Greece took delivery of HS Kimon, the first of four FDIs ordered by Athens, in December 2025.
Naval Group’s release puts the running total in one line: “A total of 13 FDI have been ordered so far, to serve three different NATO navies.” The company describes its “tried-and-tested production line” as delivering two FDIs a year and says the line “remains fully operational with available new delivery slots in 2030.”
Vincent Martinot-Lagarde, Naval Group’s executive vice president for surface ships, said in the release:
“It is a great honour to put our expertise at the service of Sweden’s sovereignty and naval superiority.”
He said the company was “proud to begin FDI Luleå’s industrial journey in Lorient,” and that all Naval Group sites and teams are involved in the program “in close cooperation with the FMV both in France and in Sweden.” The company also says it is “fully committed to strengthening its cooperation with Swedish industry through a structured, and long-term industrial partnership.”
The schedule now on the record is fixed at both ends: steel cut for Luleå at Lorient on Oct. 1, 2026, the first ship’s delivery in 2030, and the last of the four by 2034, per the French ministry.
Top image: The French Navy frigate Amiral Ronarc’h, the lead ship of Naval Group’s FDI design that Sweden’s Luleå is based on, docked in New York. Image Credit: StSeanSpicer — CC0 / Wikimedia Commons
This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Combat Rated editors prior to publication.