The Finnish Border Guard has launched a project to develop patrol vehicles and boats equipped to counter drones, working alongside several industry partners.
This initiative is intended to strengthen national border security, the protection of territorial integrity, and the safeguarding of critical infrastructure across Finland.
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Under the scheme, the Finnish Border Guard plans to assemble vehicles and vessels with standard counter-drone technologies, which will be rolled out for use throughout the country.
The system is designed for compatibility with existing frameworks used by other security authorities, aiming to form a cohesive surveillance and response network.
The approach relies on a combination of stationary surveillance, mobile counter-drone equipment, and protected patrol units.
With fresh funding now available, procurement for the first evaluation models of patrol vehicles and boats has started. These prototypes will be equipped with integrated network and data solutions.
Their functionality will undergo assessment in 2027 and into early 2028.
The selection of series production units will depend on these initial evaluations, with a final decision on further financing to be made by Finland’s next government.
Production and delivery will be handled by a Finnish-Nordic industrial consortium led by the Finnish Border Guard.
Marine Alutech will provide the protected patrol boats, while patrol vehicles will be built by Saab using the Sisu GTP platform.
Nokia Defense is supplying intelligent network solutions, and 61N Solutions will carry out data integration with management systems that serve the Finnish Border Guard and other authorities.
Nokia Defense chairman and chief geopolitical and government relations officer Mikko Hautala said: “By contributing Nokia’s intelligent connectivity and sensing technology to this consortium, we are helping build an operational and interoperable solution that gives border authorities the real-time awareness and resilience they need in complex land and maritime environments.”
The consortium met on Thursday (25 June) to mark the signing of official agreements.
The Finnish Border Guard entered into a contract with Marine Alutech and signed a letter of intent with Saab and Nokia, confirming plans to reach definitive supply contracts by the end of 2026.
The organisation had already established a contract with 61N Solutions before the meeting.
