Construction begins on Royal Navy’s new Type 31 frigate

Babcock announces keel laying of the first of five new RN Type 31 frigates, HMS Venturer, at its Rosyth facility in Scotland.

After cutting the first steel in September 2021, the keel laying event formally recognised the start of the build. Construction will occur in the Venturer Building, which will house two frigates for parallel assemblies.

The Type 31 programme is an important part of the National Shipbuilding Strategy for ‘a globally successful, innovative and sustainable shipbuilding enterprise, which was refreshed last month.

According to Shephard Defence Insight, the Type 31, or Inspiration class, frigate programme aims to replace the 13 Type 23 Duke-class frigates.

Eight ships were designated for anti-submarine warfare, which became the Type 26 programme, and five were designated for light general-purpose operations, which became the Type 31.

The keel laying ceremony follows Babcock’s announcement last month that it had received a second export contract for its Arrowhead 140 frigate as part of Poland’s Miecznik, or Swordfish, frigate programme.

With a single frigate estimated to cost in the region of $667 million, the total Miecznik programme value could be around $2 billion. It is expected the first frigate will be delivered by 2028.