On May 13th 2022, Al Emarat, the second Gowind® corvette ordered by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to Naval Group, has been launched in Lorient in presence of an official delegation from the United Arab Emirates Navy. In July 2019, Naval Group won a €1.2 billion contract, which includes the construction of four new Gowind multi-mission corvettes for the Romanian Navy, as well as a new maintenance center and a training center. Naval Group is due to build the first corvette within three years, while the remaining three corvettes will be constructed by Constan?a Shipyard and be delivered before 2026. The first corvette, Bani Yas, was launched in December 2021. The second one, Al Emarat, has been launched on May 13th in the Naval Group Lorient shipyard.
Gowind is Naval Group’s response to 21st century security and defence challenges. It is a corvette-size multi-mission Surface Combatant offering capabilities in all areas. It is designed to perform the full spectrum of naval defence operations and maritime security roles, with the highest level of performance. Naval Group, as a turn-key solution provider, will also train the UAE Navy’s crew from the equipment level up to the operational level. Starting in France, this preparation will continue with team-building and practice on operational scenarios in every warfare area in the Gulf. Gowind® enjoys significant commercial success as 12 units have already been sold. Most of them are built locally through Transfer of Technology and partnerships with local industry, for example in Egypt where three units are now in service within the Egyptian Navy.
Sturdy, strongly equipped, highly manoeuvrable, Gowind® integrates, through Naval Group’s SETIS® Combat Management System (CMS) and innovative structural solutions, the latest generation sensors and weapons. Designed to be used against air, naval or underwater threats from the initial steps of the engineering process, Gowind® is multipurpose by design. Gowind® is a sea proven, enduring, stealth and highly survivable platform offering:
high performance warfare capabilities integrated through the SETIS® CMS and an efficient and innovative Panoramic Sensors and Intelligence Module (PSIM);
automated systems for user-friendly operations by an optimized crew;
large and smart deployable assets (heavy helicopter, UAVs, RHIBs);
growth potential driven by customer requirement and innovation.
Naval Group—formerly known as Direction des Constructions Navales (DCNS) or Direction des Constructions Navales International (DCNI)—is a global and major French defense contractor and an industrial group that specialised in naval-based defence. The group employs nearly 16,000 people in 18 countries. The company is owned in part by the Agence des participations de l’État, a private company through which the French state holds a 62.49% stake, Thales holds 35% and the personnel holds a 1.64% stake. Present throughout the entire life cycle of the ships, the group designs, builds, integrates and maintains submarines and surface ships, as well as their systems and equipment, through to dismantling. It also provides services for shipyards and naval bases. With operations on five continents, the group has a turnover of 4.1 billion euros and employs 16028 people (full-time equivalents /December 2021 data).
