Shipbuilding next steps after closing the flagship Kormoran II program for MW RP

The conclusion of the Kormoran II programme marks a new stage in Shipbuilding Renovation history and opens a discussion about the future of the shipyard after the conclusion of the flagship program for the Polish Navy. The Management Board indicates that the strategy after Kormoran II is based on the use of the acquired competences and diversification of the procurement portfolio in the shipbuilding sector.

In view of the upcoming finale of the program, the editorial board of our portal directed a set of questions to the Remontowa Shipbuilding regarding further strategy, the use of the accumulated technological potential and export prospects of project 258. The board’s answers allow the reader to assess whether the completion of the mine destroyers’ construction means only the closure of an important chapter, or is the starting point for subsequent domestic and foreign market ventures.

Completion of Kormoran II – Shipbuilding Renovation Strategy after 2027

The Kormoran II program is entering the final phase. Does Repair Shipbuilding already have a strategy to operate for the "after the Cormorans" period? What are the key assumptions for the next 3-5 years? The construction of the last mine destroyer is due to end next August. Does the board of shipyards view this as a symbolic closure of an era in the operation of the plant?

The Kormoran II mine destroyer program enters its final phase and its completion during the following year (2027) will indeed be a symbolic closure of an important chapter in Shipbuilding's history. However, this does not mean a breakthrough for shipyards in the organisational or business sense.

Shipyard overal participates in the program under codename Dolphin, whose aim is to provide the Navy with two modern ships designed to collect intelligence by capturing and analyzing electronic signals.

Shipbuilding is one of many large and complex projects in our history. The shipyard strategy for the next three to five years implies a diversification of the order book, covering both Civil projects, as well as military for the Polish Navy. One of the key directions of development is foreign expansion – active customer search in international markets and the construction of a permanent export presence of Shipbuilding Remontowa.

Powers Shipbuilding Renovation After Program End

Twelve years of work on one type of ships are huge technological and organizational capital. How does Remontowa intend to use it in subsequent projects? How does the shipyard plan to manage the resources involved in the Kormoran II programme – engineering, production and infrastructure and technology lines?

Twelve years of work on one type of ship allowed a unique competence to be gathered in the field of:

• construction of specialised units,
• integration of complex ship systems,
• the management of highly complex military programmes.

This technological capital is not ‘allocated’ exclusively to Cormoran II. It can be used in subsequent projects – both military (support, patrol, hydrographic) and civilian (offshore units, specialised ships, ferries).

Personnel and infrastructure resources will be flexibly shifted to new projects, as Shipbuilding has repeatedly implemented successfully in the past.

Kormoran II – export potential and operations of Shipbuilding Repair Yard

Has Kormoran II been or is being treated as a potential export product at the shipyard? If so, at what stage were these actions? Were there or are there currently talks with foreign partners regarding the export of project 258 mine destroyers? If so – with what markets or fleets? If the exports of Kormorana II have not yet come to fruition, which was the main barrier: political conditionality, lack of institutional support, market competition or strictly business decisions? What elements of the 258 Renovation project do you consider to be its real competitive advantage in the international market today?

Yes – Kormoran II from the beginning was and remains treated as a project with export potential. One of its key advantages is that we are dealing with a project proven in operational practice, not just a demonstration.

The first unit was implemented in the formula of the R & D project, which allowed to collect a full package of operational experiences. On this basis, the project was updated and optimised in the construction of subsequent series units. Thanks to this, the current configuration of Cormoran II is a mature, verified and refined construction under real service conditions.

An important advantage of the project is the fact that the first three units are already in the service of the Polish Navy, where they perform operational tasks effectively. These ships actively participate in NATO teams and exercises, gaining positive assessments from allied partners, which is an important argument in export talks.

From a technical point of view, the most important asset of Cormoran II is the use of a fully remote (stand-off) mine-fighting system operating far away from immediate danger. The tasks are carried out using a wide range of unmanned submarines and submarines, which are fully integrated into a single command system and to lead the fight. Such a solution significantly increases crew safety and the effectiveness of mine activities.

Additional advantages of the project are the very good maneuverability of the unit and the amagnetic hull, which minimizes the magnetic signature of the ship and increases its resistance to mine hazards, as well as system and technological solutions to increase the autonomy of the ship and its operation.

The lack of an existing export contract is therefore not due to technical constraints of the project. The acquisition activities are carried out continuously and the decision-making processes in the warship market are long-term and multi-stage. Repair Shipbuilding consistently develops its export offer and talks on selected foreign markets.

The strengthening element of these activities is the cooperation with the PGZ S.A. Capital Group in support of export activity.

The acquisition activities are continuing on selected foreign markets, but due to their sensitive nature we cannot currently disclose details.

Cormoran II – Platform development and possible upgrades after the end of the programme

Is the yard considering the development of the Kormoran II platform – e.g. towards development, more modular or adapted to future MCM 2.0 concepts? Are there talks about modernization, retrofitting or further development of already built units for the Polish Navy?

Shipbuilding refurbishes and remains open to platform evolution — possible directions are developmental versions, modularity and adaptations to future concepts of Mine Countermeasures (MCM), i.e. antiminal actions. At the same time, it is important to discuss modernisation and retrofitting of existing units in cooperation with state institutions and technical partners. Therefore, the experience gained in Cormoran may form the basis for further development and modernisation of the MCM.

Next programs for the Navy War

To what extent is Shipbuilding Repair today ready to use current production capacity to build other types of military units? Does the yard conduct talks or analyses of patrol projects, auxiliary, hydrographic or other support units?

Renovation has production capacity and know-how that allow to participate in the construction of various types of military units (including patrol boats, auxiliary ships, hydrographics, tugboats, logistics security units). The company conducts analyses and talks with national and foreign entities in order to acquire new contracts. In parallel, civil projects are being developed, which allows the production order to be stabilised and reduces the risk of interruption in employment.

Kormoran II – Continuity of production and employment in the Gdańsk shipyard after the end of the programme

Does the end of a large program for the Navy risk a production break or loss of part of competence? How is the board going to counter this? How does Remontowa assess its chances of acquiring new military orders in the coming years?

The completion of a major military program, such as Kormoran II, always requires proper planning, but Shipbuilding Renovation has been in place for years in a model that assumes continuous variability of ongoing projects.

The management of the yard has consistently sought to reduce the risk of production interruption by diversifying the order book and actively obtaining new contracts — both civilian and military. In the Military Area Shipbuilding focuses on the preparation of the offer in the areas of hydrographic, auxiliary and other support units in which it has many years of experience and appropriate design and production competence.

In parallel, intensive commercial activities are carried out in the civil market, including offshore ships, passenger ferries, multi-purpose and specialised units. Such a "mix" model of civil and military projects allows flexible management of resources, maintaining team competence and ensuring continuity of employment.

Shipbuilding has repeatedly proven in the past the ability to adapt quickly to new market conditions and new project types. This experience is one of the pillars of the stable operation of the yard also during the transitional period following the conclusion of the Kormoran II programme.

Conclusions and lessons from the Kormoran II programme

From the management perspective, what was the most important lesson of 12 years of implementation of the Kormoran II programme, and how will it affect future projects of the yard?

The Kormoran II program was a unique project for Remontowa Shipbuilding in terms of complexity and scope of technical, organisational and formal challenges. It is difficult to identify one "most important lesson" because the experience gained from the implementation of this programme concerns many areas simultaneously.

One of the key challenges was the implementation of the prototype project, conducted in the R & D formula. This meant the need for parallel development of design documentation, production technology and the preparation of executive facilities, while meeting the high requirements of the Polish Navy.

Cooperation within the Consortium, which included Shipbuilding Repair, was also an important experience, PGZ Stocznia Wojenna (previously Naval Shipyard) and CTM OBR Gdynia. It was the first such extensive form of cooperation of these entities in the implementation of a single ship program. Initially, this cooperation involved natural organisational and coordination challenges, but over time these processes were orderly and stabilised, which translated into efficient implementation of subsequent units.

The programme also required a substantial adjustment and expansion of shipbuilding infrastructure. During its renovation, Shipbuilding supplemented production facilities with a new production hall, as well as investing in a modern machine park, including specialized sheet cutting and profile cutting machines, welding equipment and other equipment necessary for the machining and assembly of a magnetic steel. In parallel, dedicated welding technologies of this type of steel were developed and implemented and a wide range of tests and tests were carried out.

The extensive reception procedures carried out in cooperation with the Armed Forces Agency and the Polish Navy, which required precise coordination of the work of the shipyards and the activities carried out by consortiums and ship system providers, should also not be disregarded.

In conclusion, the Kormoran II programme was (and still is) an important experience for Shipbuilding Renovation building up permanent competence in implementing complex ship programs for the Polish Navy — from the prototype phase, through mass production, to system integration, infrastructure investments and military receptions. The know-how thus gained provides a solid basis for the implementation of further military and specialised projects in the future.