UK to boost submarine maintenance and nuclear defueling at Devonport facility
Improvements at the Devonport site will support submarine maintenance. (Photo: Babcock)
The construction programme, one of the largest projects of its kind, will cost more than US$900 million and will lead to substantial upgrades to existing infrastructure at the site on the Devon coast.
Babcock International has been awarded a £750 million (US$912 million) contract to upgrade and improve infrastructure at Devonport dockyard in Plymouth on the UK’s south coast.
The company will provide improved submarine maintenance and deep maintenance facilities for the UK Royal Navy’s current and future fleet of conventional and nuclear submarines.
The project, which will take four years to deliver, will consist of ‘substantial upgrades to existing infrastructure to support the future capability of the Royal Navy and the UK's Defence Nuclear Enterprise’, according to Babcock.
‘The contract includes a dock, logistics and modern support facilities, and underpins the wider role Babcock plays in sustaining the entirety of the UK submarine fleet … including nuclear defuelling,’ the company noted.
The deal follows other contract placed since 2020 worth about $140 million, in particular to support Astute-class submarines which was described by Babcock as ‘the first stage in a multi-year development programme for Devonport that will see improvement projects span many years’.
Babcock’s Devonport facility is co-located with HM Naval Base Devonport and is one of the largest naval support sites in Western Europe.
More from Naval Warfare
-
![US Coast Guard enhances Arctic protection with a new Fast Response Cutter]()
US Coast Guard enhances Arctic protection with a new Fast Response Cutter
After commissioning, FRC Frederick Mann will operate in Alaska and perform multiple missions.
-
![US Coast Guard announces measures to further implement Force Design 2028 strategy]()
US Coast Guard announces measures to further implement Force Design 2028 strategy
The US Coast Guard (USCG) created new units, including five Programme Executive Offices (PEOs), to facilitate and speed up the procurement of new capabilities.
-
![Future of the US Navy’s Arleigh Burke programme remains unclear]()
Future of the US Navy’s Arleigh Burke programme remains unclear
The US Navy does not have a precise date for the award of the procurement contract for the third Arleigh Burke-class destroyer despite having the funds to advance with the programme in FY2025.
-
![US Navy may look to foreign suppliers to accelerate shipbuilding programmes]()
US Navy may look to foreign suppliers to accelerate shipbuilding programmes
The US Navy (USN) is currently reassessing its acquisition efforts and seeking ways to reduce the multiple delays across the shipbuilding initiatives.
-
![Australia commissions HMAS Arafura three-and-a-half years behind schedule]()
Australia commissions HMAS Arafura three-and-a-half years behind schedule
The Royal Australian Navy has finally commissioned the first Arafura-class offshore patrol vessel – more than three years behind schedule – highlighting the programme’s delays, design compromises and ongoing industrial restructuring.
-
![Italy orders two ships as work begins on others along with deliveries and updates]()
Italy orders two ships as work begins on others along with deliveries and updates
The Italian Navy is being refreshed with two new ships ordered, while in the past six months steel was cut for a new frigate, an enhanced frigate was delivered and Horizon-class frigates passed a design review.
