The State of Norway is suing Spanish state-owned shipyard Navantia (f.k.a. Izar) for EUR 1.1 billion for basic design and construction errors in the frigate F313 Helge Ingstad. This was confirmed by the Ministry of Defence on 9 April 2025. The naval combat vessel was lost after a collision with tanker vessel Sola TS in the Hjeltefjord on 8 November 2018.
“A security critical construction error” is what the Norwegian Ministry of Defence calls the reason for dragging the Spanish shipyard to court. According to the Norwegian MoD, the fact that the ship’s propeller shafts were hollow allowed water to flow between watertight sections of the ship, causing it to sink and going sideways after the accident. The vessel sustained that much damaged that it was written off, as experts estimated repair costs to equal the costs of a new ship.
A large hole, continuing taking water
Although the accident itself has been largely blamed on human failure of crew on board the Helge Ingstad and the tanker vessel Sola, the accident report states a large hole from the starboard torpedo launchers to the stern was the result. When grounded in shallow waters, it was continuing taking in water through the propeller shaft and stuffing boxes. Out of the frigate’s crew of 137, seven were injured. The tanker vessel Sola sustained relatively minor damages and continued to sail on her own power.
More vessels, also design flaws?
The Royal Norwegian Navy still has four frigates of the same Fridtjof Nansen-class on strength. Moreover, the Spanish navy has five vessels of the Álvaro de Bazán-class of the same design. Australia has three in the Hobart class. It is not fully clear whether all these ships have a design flaw.
The money claim of the State of Norway equals most of the construction costs of a new frigate of a similar size and with similar capabilities. | © 2025 Marcel Burger, nordicreporter.com. Featured photo taken from the parly sunk and tilted Helge Ingstad on 13 November 2018 (Photo: Kystverket)