Dutch firm to design crew quarters for new Orka-class submarines

A Dutch shipbuilder has landed the job of designing where submarine crews will sleep, eat and live during long stretches under the sea. Royal IHC and France’s Naval Group signed a contract Sept. 15, 2026, covering the living quarters on board the Royal Netherlands Navy’s new Orka-class submarines.

It sounds like a modest piece of a much bigger puzzle, and it is. But living quarters on a submarine are not a side detail. A crew can spend weeks submerged with no natural light and limited space to move, so how those quarters are laid out affects morale, rest and, ultimately, how well a crew can do its job on a long patrol. Under the new contract, Royal IHC will handle the design work first, with production and installation of the finished module following in a later phase.

The living-quarters deal is part of a much larger effort. Royal IHC is one of several Dutch companies working under Naval Group as part of Team Orka, the industrial network the French shipbuilder has assembled to build the Netherlands’ next generation of submarines. That broader program traces back to September 2024, when the Dutch government signed a delivery agreement with Naval Group to build four new submarines, replacing the navy’s aging Walrus-class boats. The new vessels will be named Orka, Zwaardvis, Barracuda and Tijgerhaai. A Dutch government estimate at the time put the total investment budget for the program, covering construction of all four submarines and related costs through 2039, at roughly €5.6 billion, or about $6.2 billion.

Royal IHC’s relationship with Naval Group on this program did not start with Monday’s contract. The two companies signed a broader agreement in June 2025 covering steel structures and modular construction work for the submarines, building on a partnership that goes back to 2018. This week’s deal narrows that cooperation down to one specific piece of the build: the crew’s living spaces.

“The signing of this contract is an important milestone for Royal IHC,” said Eric Gret, director of defence at Royal IHC.

“Naval Group’s confidence in our expertise and manufacturing capabilities confirms the strength of our organisation. We are proud to be contributing to the Orka-class submarines and look forward with confidence to our continued future collaboration with Naval Group in the construction of complete modules,” Gret said.

Naval Group’s Dutch country director framed the contract in similar terms, describing it as evidence that the French company’s promise to bring Dutch industry into the program is being kept in practice rather than staying on paper.

“For Naval Group, collaboration with Dutch industrial partners is a key part of the programme,” said Mark Donderwinkel, country director Netherlands at Naval Group. “Royal IHC brings proven maritime expertise and experience in complex projects. This first contract represents an important step in our joint commitment to providing modern, reliable and future-proof submarine capability for the Royal Netherlands Navy.”

Timing-wise, the Netherlands is not expecting these submarines overnight. Naval Group is due to deliver the first two boats, Orka and Zwaardvis, within 10 years of the original 2024 agreement, meaning the mid-2030s at the earliest. The remaining two vessels, Barracuda and Tijgerhaai, will follow after that. Neither company said Monday how long the design phase for the living quarters will take, what the module’s final layout will include, or what this particular piece of the contract is worth. Those details, like much of the day-to-day progress on a submarine program that will stretch for years, are likely to emerge gradually as construction moves forward.