Babcock and UK MoD at loggerheads over bill for increased Type 31 programme expenses
A rendering of the UK RN's future Type 31 frigate. (Image: UK MoD/Crown Copyright)
The shipbuilder is building five frigates for the UK RN under a £1.25 billion contract awarded in 2019, shaking out at around £250 million per ship.
To date, Babcock said it had seen revenues of £600 million related to the project but seen no profit on the programme.
Over the course of FY2023, Babcock said it had been in a dialogue with the UK MoD ‘about the contractual position regarding additional forecast costs resulting from certain material macroeconomic changes that were not foreseen at contract inception’.
The shipbuilder said these had increased the actual and projected programme costs to deliver
Our news & analysis is now part of Defence Insight®
A Basic-level or higher Defence Insight subscription is now required to view this content.
More from Naval Warfare
-
Germany sinks F126 frigate programme in favour of cheaper MEKO A-200
On 24 June 2026, the German Ministry of Defence announced it was cancelling the F126 frigate programme in favour of procuring eight MEKO A-200 DEU frigates.
-
UK’s Type 31 frigate balances cost pressure with long-term export ambition
The UK shipbuilder’s full-year results to the end of March revealed the impact of the £140 million charge linked to design changes and rework on the Royal Navy’s Type 31 frigate programme.
-
US Navy expands non-standard acquisitions to rapidly field emerging technologies
The US Navy is increasing the use of OTA obligations to accelerate the procurement of seabed-subsea, littoral, expeditionary and uncrewed solutions.