Germany has scrapped its six-frigate F126 programme after delays and rising costs threatened to push the project’s funding requirement above €18bn ($20.46bn), according to Germany’s Federal Ministry of Defence.
The decision ends one of Germany’s largest naval procurement projects after the ministry concluded that the ships could no longer be delivered within the agreed schedule and financial framework. It cited “significant delays”, expected cost increases and the risks of changing the general contractor.
Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding, the Dutch contractor originally selected for the programme, was unable to meet the agreed timetable and cost framework, the ministry said.
The F126 programme was launched in 2020 with an expected cost of about €10bn ($11.37bn) for six ships. The first frigate had been due to reach initial capability in mid-2028, with all six vessels available to the German Navy by 2033.
Berlin examined transferring the general contractor role to Naval Vessels Lürssen, now part of Rheinmetall, but the ministry said that new contract alone would have cost about €15.2bn ($17.28bn). Once work already carried out under the Damen contract and related support arrangements were included, the total funding requirement would have exceeded €18bn.
Defence minister Boris Pistorius said about €2.3bn ($2.61bn) had already been spent on F126. “Better to have a tough ending than a drawn-out state of limbo,” he said.
Germany is also examining possible damages claims, although Pistorius said he saw little chance of success.
The German government now plans to procure eight MEKO A-200 DEU frigates from TKMS, subject to approval by the Bundestag’s budget committee. The first four ships would cost about €6.3bn ($7.16bn), with an option for four more by the end of 2026 at about €5.3bn ($6.03bn). The ships are intended primarily for anti-submarine warfare.
The cancellation is a setback for Rheinmetall’s naval ambitions after its move into shipbuilding through NVL. Rheinmetall shares fell as much as 20%, erasing more than €11bn ($12.50bn) in market value, while TKMS shares rose.
Peene-Werft in Wolgast, now part of Rheinmetall’s naval business, had been involved in the F126 work. Mecklenburg-Vorpommern minister president Manuela Schwesig said the yard should be included in future frigate construction if F126 could not be completed, arguing that the quality of work at Wolgast was not the reason the project failed.
TKMS, formerly Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems, is a German naval shipbuilder with more than 9,100 employees and yards in Kiel, Wismar and Itajaí, Brazil.
Damen Naval is part of the Netherlands-based Damen group, with Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuilding acting as the original F126 prime contractor.
Rheinmetall is a German defence group that completed its takeover of Naval Vessels Lürssen in March 2026.
