Military production for navies up 50% in past two years, Naval Group says

Naval Military Production Increases 50% as Geopolitical Risks Drive Demand

Global Surge in Naval Military Production

PARIS, Nov 2 (Reuters) - Military production for navies, including ships and submarines, has surged nearly 50% in value over the past two years, France's Naval Group said on Monday, as Western governments respond to threats from Russia and instability in the Middle East.

Key Findings from Euronaval Defence Trade Show

• Speaking at the opening of the Euronaval defence trade show in Paris, Naval Group CEO Pierre-Eric Pommellet cited a Euronaval study showing the value of naval military production rose to $122 billion in 2024-2025 from $82 billion two years earlier

Regional Leaders in Naval Construction

• Pommellet said China led naval military construction in 2024-2025, ahead of the US

Impact of Recent Conflicts on Naval Modernisation

• Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and amid war in the Middle East, Western countries have been racing to modernise their fleets

Changing Maritime Security Landscape

End of an Era of Maritime Safety

• "For 30 years, many of us treated the sea as given, open, safe, free — a place where commerce just flowed." Pommellet said. "This era is now over"

Emerging Threats to Navies

• "Ukraine, the Black Sea, the Red Sea, the Gulf, Indo-Pacific, shadow fleets, cable cuts, drones, striking fires, missiles, mines, jamming — all at once, and it's all very visible to our people." he said, describing the threats facing navies

Calls for International Naval Cooperation

European and Allied Collaboration

• Pommellet, who also chairs French naval industry association GICAN, called for closer cooperation among European and allied navies

Benefits of Shared Naval Programs

• "Nobody needs a fleet alone any more. Naval programmes are increasingly European and international," he said

• "When several navies operate the same frigate on the same ship, the same systems, the same mission systems, the same logistics, everyone gains," he added

(Reporting by Florence Loève. Editing by Inti Landauro and Mark Potter)