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Thursday, October 26, 2006

France to Order Nuclear-Powered Attack Submarines

Barracuda-class SubmarineThe French government expects to award a contract for six Barracuda-class, nuclear-powered attack submarines to shipbuilder DCN and Areva SA by year-end, Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said today.

The six submarines will be delivered from 2016 through 2026, Alliot-Marie said at a briefing at the Euronaval naval trade show in Le Bourget, France. DCN Chief Executive Officer Jean-Marie Poimboeuf said earlier this month the order would be worth 8 billion euros ($10 billion). DCN will build the ships and the equipment and Areva will supply the nuclear reactors.

The vessels, which can be used for anti-surface and anti- submarine warfare, as well as intelligence gathering, will replace the French Navy's Rubis submarines, and will be more ``stealthy'' --difficult to detect -- than the Rubis, said Guillaume Martin de Clausonne, a Navy captain, at the trade event.

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