Norway's government has reached a settlement with NH Industries regarding a dispute over helicopter purchases. The company will pay the Norwegian state 305 million euros. This equals approximately 2.3 billion Danish kroner.
The agreement prevents a court case scheduled to begin on November 10. The settlement amount comes in addition to previously paid bank guarantees worth about 70 million euros from NHI to Norway.
The conflict started in 2022 when Norway's defense minister announced the country was so dissatisfied with its NH90 helicopters that it wanted to return them. These European-made aircraft were ordered from NHI over twenty years ago for delivery between 2005 and 2008. Yet by 2022, Norway still hadn't received the last of the 14 ordered helicopters.
Norwegian authorities immediately took all the helicopters out of service. The former defense minister stated they conducted a thorough assessment about achieving operational usefulness with the NH90 through additional measures. The conclusion was negative.
Officials cited multiple deficiencies with the helicopters. These included frequent delivery delays, numerous technical faults, and time-consuming maintenance that made operations extremely expensive.
NH Industries expressed extreme disappointment with Norway's decision. The company rejected all accusations against both the NH90 helicopter and their organization. By late last year, the Norwegian state was seeking 29 billion Norwegian kroner in compensation.
This settlement closes a lengthy dispute that saw Norway take the rare step of rejecting military equipment it had already purchased. The resolution avoids what would have been a complex international legal battle between a NATO member and a major defense contractor.