The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence has officially ended plans to acquire an uncrewed surface vessel under the Project Lily.
According to the UK Defence Journal, a termination notice published on February 3, 2026, by Defence Equipment and Support confirms that the contract will not be signed, and the acquisition is no longer proceeding.
The decision to halt the project was made on January 16, 2026, according to the notice. The British outlet reports that Project Lily was announced in an acquisition notice issued in May 2025 under the 2023 Procurement Act.
The notice had outlined plans to acquire a single commercial uncrewed surface vessel, along with a dedicated Remote Operations Centre, to support year-round operations in open oceanic environments.
Initial documentation indicated that the vessel would operate initially under a government-owned and commercially operated model for two years before transitioning to government ownership, operated by the government with ongoing commercial support.
The estimated value of the program was £27.3 million (approximately $37.46 million), including VAT, with a planned contract duration of four years, from January 2026 to January 2030.
The acquisition was intended to support military data collection tasks, particularly focusing on hydrographic and oceanographic activity, and was framed as part of a broader effort to explore uncrewed systems for tasks critical to underwater awareness and maritime operations.
No explanation beyond “the acquisition is no longer proceeding” is provided in the termination notice. The Ministry of Defence has also not specified whether any elements of the requirement might be revisited or folded into other programs.
For now, what we know is that the cancellation of the project removes one of the most clearly defined short-term opportunities for an uncrewed surface vessel capability operated by the UK’s Ministry of Defence.
Photo: Royal Navy. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
