France’s defence procurement agency, the Direction générale de l’armement (DGA), is to provide the French Navy with its first sovereign ultra-deep-sea exploration and surveillance capability and has chosen maritime robotics specialist Exail to supply a new autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) capable of operating at depths of up to 6,000 m, the company announced on 3 October 2024.
Ensuring control of the seabed, as set out in the France 2030 investment plan, has become a major strategic challenge for France, in particular to ensure the sovereignty and freedom of action of the country and to protect its strategic and economic interests. In this regard France’s objectives have three main components: ‘to know’, ‘to monitor’ and ‘to take action’.
As part of the capability-building process set out in the Ministerial Strategy for Seabed Warfare adopted in 2022, the French Navy will be extending its investigation and intervention capabilities to a depth of 6,000 m through the acquisition of AUVs dedicated to the first two components, while remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) will address the third component.
The A6K-M AUV that Exail will supply is based on the architecture of Ulyx: the AUV co-developed by Exail and Ifremer (the French national institute for ocean science and technology). The latter made its first dives to 6,000 m during the autumn of 2023.
The new AUV will incorporate a number of Exail-designed and -manufactured components, including a Phins inertial navigation system and acoustic sensors, but will also be able to carry sensors from other suppliers in order to adapt the system to the missions to hand. The A6K-M AUV is the first of Exail’s A6K deep-sea AUV range.
“Building on the technological building blocks already developed for Ulyx, this [new] AUV is a fine example of dual-use technology that will be adapted to meet the specific needs of the French Navy. It will carry out reconnaissance and surveillance missions on the seabed, as well as on sensitive underwater infrastructures such as submarine cables,” Exail stated in a press release.
“We are honoured to have been chosen by the French government to develop this new 6,000 m AUV, which will enable the French Navy to carry out the strategy of the Ministry of the Armed Forces. We are extremely proud of this recognition of our technological expertise in seabed warfare, and to contribute to strengthening national sovereignty”, Jérome Bendell, managing director of Exail’s Maritime Systems Division, was quoted as saying.
