The maritime autonomy company adds three European build partners and opens Northern Europe operations at the historic Quintus Bastion in Copenhagen.
Saildrone announced a major European expansion on August 18, 2026, from its new EU headquarters in Copenhagen. The expansion includes three build contracts across Northern Europe. Van Der Valk Shipyard in the Netherlands will build the first European-produced 52-meter (171-foot) Saildrone Spectre. Umoe Mandal in Norway will produce the next-generation Surveyor and Southern Spars in Poland will build its wings. The investments target Saildrone unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) for European customers.
“We are proud to announce not one, but three large construction projects. The first European-built 52-meter Saildrone Spectre will be built at Van Der Valk Shipyard in the Netherlands; the next generation of the Saildrone Surveyor will be produced at Umoe Mandal in Norway; and Southern Spars will produce Surveyor wings in Poland,” said Richard Jenkins, Saildrone founder and CEO. “Our EU Headquarters in Copenhagen will facilitate business development, maintenance operations, and piloting activities throughout our European operations.”
Copenhagen EU headquarters
The Copenhagen office sits at Quintus Bastion in Holmen, a 17th-century former Royal Danish Navy headquarters. New roles cover Mission Management, Vehicle Assembly and Service, Technical Operations and the Pilot Team. Defence Industry Attaché, His Royal Highness Brigadier General Prince Joachim of Denmark officiated the ribbon-cutting ceremony on August 17.
“It is fantastic to see Saildrone’s European headquarters located here in this historic naval site in Central Copenhagen,” said Prince Joachim. “Saildrone brings some of the latest maritime sensing technology to Denmark, which will certainly help protect our shared European waters against the many real threats we face today.”
Sovereign capability for European partners
Saildrone established its European subsidiary in April 2025. A $60 million funding round led by EIFO, the Export and Investment Fund of Denmark, backed the subsidiary. Four Saildrone Voyager USVs completed a six-month Danish Ministry of Defence deployment with 92% fleet uptime. The vehicles detected more than 170,000 unique contacts in harsh weather. Saildrone operates a fleet of more than 70 USVs across four classes. The classes include the 7-meter (23-foot) Explorer, 10-meter (33-foot) Voyager, 20-meter (66-foot) Surveyor and 52-meter Spectre.
“Saildrone USVs have helped governments around the world to improve maritime domain awareness, counter drug trafficking, migrant crossings, and illegal fishing, and protect critical marine infrastructure,” said Robert Kleist, managing director of Saildrone Europe. “We are pleased to bring that proven capability to our European partners facing many of the same challenges. Bringing Saildrone manufacturing and operations to Europe creates an enduring sovereign capability for our European customers.”
Saildrone participates in DALO Industry Days in Herning on August 19-20, 2026. More information is available at Saildrone.
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Ian McNabb is a journalist focusing on drone technology and lifestyle content at Dronelife. He is based between Boston and NH and, when not writing, enjoys hiking and Boston area sports.
The Copenhagen HQ and contracts with Van der Valk, Umoe Mandal, and Southern Spars show Saildrone is building a genuinely regional production network—not just adding an office. It will be interesting to see how the European-built 52-meter Spectre performs alongside the next-generation Surveyor.
The Copenhagen headquarters and three build contracts mark a significant shift toward regional production, especially with Van der Valk building the first European-made 52-meter Saildrone Spectre. It’s also interesting to see Umoe Mandal and Southern Spars contributing to the next-generation Surveyor and its wings.
The choice of Van Der Valk, Umoe Mandal, and Southern Spars makes sense—spreading hull production, next-gen surveyor assembly, and wing manufacturing across three countries gives Saildrone a genuinely localized European supply chain rather than just a sales office. Curious to see how the 52-meter Spectre’s build in the Netherlands will affect delivery timelines for European defense customers compared to US production.
The decision to split production across Van Der Valk, Umoe Mandal, and Southern Spars is a smart way to leverage regional expertise—especially having a Norwegian yard handle the next-gen Surveyor given their naval heritage. Copenhagen as the EU hub also makes sense for navigating the bloc’s evolving maritime autonomy regulations.
The choice of Van Der Valk for the Spectre and Umoe Mandal for the Surveyor shows a clear strategy to leverage specialized regional shipbuilding expertise rather than just exporting from the US. It will be interesting to see if the Polish-built wings from Southern Spars create a more resilient supply chain for European customers.
The Copenhagen HQ makes sense for Baltic/North Sea ops, but the real story here is Van Der Valk building the Spectre—that’s a serious jump in European maritime manufacturing capacity. Curious if the Norwegian Surveyor will see any Arctic-specific hardening given Umoe Mandal’s background.