£1.85 billion government navy maintenance contract will support South West jobs

By Nicky Godding

6 February 2024

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A contract worth nearly £2 billion to support maintenance on Royal Navy ships and submarines over the next 15 years has been announced.

The contract will support sonar - the ability to hear underneath the water – masts, periscopes and also electronic warfare equipment that enable the Royal Navy to detect and target potential threats.

Defence Secretary, Grant Shapps, said: "In a time of global instability, it is imperative we minimise the time our ships and submarines are out for maintenance.

"This is another partnership with Thales UK and our outstanding UK defence sector that not only boosts national security but provides a boost to local communities and helps fuel economic growth."

Around 300 UK jobs from a previous Thales UK support contract will be sustained and a further 150 STEM jobs, including highly skilled engineering roles and apprenticeships, will be created across Devonport, Faslane, Glasgow, Portsmouth, Cheadle, Crawley and Bristol. This contract also safeguards jobs from across an extensive UK supply chain.

The contract, awarded by Defence Equipment & Support – the MOD’s procurement arm – will improve the facilities at HMNB Devonport, Faslane, Portsmouth and Bahrain and deliver advanced test and repair capabilities. This enhanced waterfront presence will allow equipment to be triaged at source, thereby enabling rapid improvements in fault diagnosis, thereby reducing repair times.

The Southwest recently became the country’s Marine and Maritime Launchpad, recognising its leadership in the sector. The area will receive an additional £7.5 million in funding to support outstanding innovation projects within maritime. The shipbuilding enterprise directly supports over 43,000 jobs across the country, with over 19,000 employed in the Southwest alone.

Alex Cresswell, Chairman and CEO of Thales in the UK, said: "Thales is delighted to strengthen our century long partnership with the Royal Navy, and support its vital role in defending the UK and keeping the world’s critical sea lanes open.

"This £1.8 billion contract with Thales will help keep more Royal Navy ships at sea for longer, by harnessing the latest developments in artificial intelligence, data analysis and improved dockland facilities."

Second Sea Lord, Vice Admiral Martin Connell, said: "The warships and submarines of the Royal Navy rely on the latest cutting-edge sensors and sonars to give us a key warfighting edge.

"The new contract is a significant commitment from the MoD and Thales-UK to improving the availability of our equipment, maximising its effectiveness and enabling the Royal Navy to operate with confidence.

This significant investment in our ship and submarine sensors will ensure our equipment is at the cutting edge of technology."

By Nicky Godding

Nicky Godding is editor of The Business Magazine. Before her journalism career, she worked mainly in public relations moving into writing when she was invited to launch Retail Watch, a publication covering retail and real estate across Europe.

After some years of constant travelling, she tucked away her passport and concentrated on business writing, co-founding a successful regional business magazine. She has interviewed some of the UK’s most successful entrepreneurs who have built multi-million-pound businesses and reported on many science and technology firsts.

She reports on the region’s thriving business economy from start-ups, family businesses and multi-million-pound corporations, to the professionals that support their growth and the institutions that educate the next generation of business leaders.