Babcock wins the battle to build new warships
BABCOCK has been named the preferred bidder for the £1.3billion contract to design and build a new fleet of Royal Navy frigates.
The contract, expected to be signed off by Christmas this year, could bring some shipbuilding work to the Westcountry – although the ships will be assembled in Scotland.
The first five of the Type 31e frigates will be assembled at Babcock’s Rosyth Dockyard in Fife and will involve supply chains throughout the UK.
The company, which operates Devonport Dockyard in Plymouth, said work on the fleet would begin immediately once the formal contract is awarded later this financial year, with detailed design work first and manufacture starting in 2021.
Babcock has design teams in Devonport and Bideford in North Devon.
Archie Bethel, the company’s chief
executive, said the Arrowhead 140 was “a modern warship that will meet the maritime threats of today and tomorrow, with British ingenuity and engineering at its core”.
Earlier this year Babcock shocked North Devon by closing down its Appledore shipyard, which had manufactured hull sections for the Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers.
Tim Jones, chairman of the South West Business Council, has been involved in discussions to find a new operator for the Appledore shipyard.
Any new operator would hope to win a contract to provide similar services for Babcock, he said.
“This is probably the best news that the South West has had for a number of months,” he said.
“I’m sure that Appledore will stand a good chance, particularly because of the short timescale.
“Shipbuilding is one of prime industries. It has been a mainstay of manufacturing in the South West.
“The Appledore closure was a dark day, but this now provides a good opportunity for the shipyard to have a long pipeline of work.”
He said talks were well advanced with an international purchaser who was interested in taking over the shipyard. “We are now incredibly confident that the reopening of the yard can be anticipated before Christmas this year.”
He said that bringing Appledore shipyard back to life could bring 200 direct jobs and 150-200 indirect jobs.
Luke Pollard, Labour MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, said: “It’s fantastic news that Babcock has won the order. I have been arguing for over a year that Babcock’s bid was superior in terms of capabilities but also best in terms of creating and supporting jobs. While building the ships will be done in Scotland, Devonport will get design jobs.
“After our successful campaign to base the new Type 26 frigates in a Devonport I will now do all I can to see these new Type 31s based in our city too.”
The government has committed to buying at least five of the low-cost warships for the Royal Navy, with the first vessel expected to be in the water by 2023.
The average production cost is £250 million per ship.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace has been appointed as the government’s new “shipbuilding tsar” to enhance the UK’s production.
He will look at how the government can use further education, skilled apprenticeships and graduates to achieve a sustainable skills base for British shipbuilding across the UK.