Serco has secured three major contracts valued at over £1 billion from the UK Ministry of Defence to deliver maritime services for the Royal Navy. These contracts, which include modernisation and expansion of existing capabilities, will commence later this year.

The international services provider has supported the Royal Navy for nearly 30 years, delivering a range of critical services from military training exercises to harbour assistance. These new contracts will extend that partnership with enhanced services and new responsibilities.

The largest contract, valued at approximately £850 million over ten years, covers the delivery of in-port services at HMNB Devonport in Plymouth, HMNB Portsmouth, and the Clyde, including HMNB Faslane. As part of the modernisation effort, Serco will procure 24 new vessels to replace older ones currently in service. The contract covers vessel towage, passenger transfer, and barge and tank cleaning services at Portsmouth and Devonport.

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Addressing anticipated skills shortages in artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and automation is essential to the future of UK shipbuilding sector, according to a new report by the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland (NMIS), operated by the University of Strathclyde and based at the Advanced Manufacturing Innovation District Scotland (AMIDS) in Renfrewshire.

Developed with industry partners and Innovate UK’s Workforce Foresighting Hub, the report highlights the need to equip the workforce with the skills required as the industry evolves and adopts new technology. It looks ahead to the next five years and beyond, emphasising the importance of adapting both traditional roles and emerging ones.

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Navantia UK announces that its Arnish fabrication facility in the Outer Hebrides has been awarded a significant contract by McDermott Trinidad Ltd for the manufacture of subsea structures, further establishing the site’s position as a centre of excellence for energy infrastructure.

The year-long contract will see the Arnish team deliver critical subsea components for a project in Trinidad and Tobago. This new agreement builds upon the facility’s growing reputation in the subsea sector and will support continued workforce expansion at the site.

Juan de la Cueva, CEO of Navantia UK, said: “We are delighted to partner with McDermott Trinidad on this important project. By securing international work for our Arnish facility, we are not only supporting skilled jobs in the Outer Hebrides but also showcasing Scottish engineering excellence globally. This contract represents exactly the type of high-value manufacturing that we want to bring to our UK facilities.”

The contract represents a significant development for the Arnish facility, which was recently acquired as part of Navantia UK’s purchase of Harland & Wolff’s four UK yards. It aligns with the company’s strategy to develop its Scottish facilities as hubs for energy infrastructure manufacturing.

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A new report from the Council on Geostrategy highlights the urgent need for revitalising Britain’s maritime industries to drive innovation, boost economic growth, and enhance national security.

The Sea Power Laboratory Primer, authored by Dr Emma Salisbury, outlines several key recommendations for His Majesty’s Government (HM Government) to overcome barriers and unlock long-term opportunities for British maritime success.

The Primer underscores the strategic importance of naval and commercial shipbuilding, port services, undersea infrastructure, and offshore renewable energy in maintaining Britain’s global competitiveness.

However, these sectors face significant challenges, including outdated facilities, a shortage of skilled workers, and gaps in maritime-specific training. To address these issues, the report calls for coordinated efforts across government departments and industry stakeholders.

Dr Salisbury emphasised the urgency of action, stating: “Reinvigorating these once-mighty industries would be valuable for promoting not only national security, but also a stronger British economy and the prosperity of communities around shipyards, ports, and maritime manufacturing sites around the country.”

The report suggests the creation of a Maritime Skills Passport and a comprehensive workforce plan to address labour shortages and skill development in the maritime sector.

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Cammell Laird Shiprepairers & Shipbuilders Limited will construct the first new Mersey ferry in 60 years in a move which marks a major milestone for the shipbuilder.

The Birkenhead facility – which is part of the APCL Group – has put pen to paper with the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority on a deal which will see the new vessel designed and built exclusively on-site.

The state-of-the-art vessel will be designed to harness green technology, with a cutting edge Azi-pull propeller system for reduced fuel usage, along with a diesel-electric hybrid-ready propulsion system – with potential for future conversion to full electric propulsion as technology evolves.

The ferry will also have an exhaust after treatment system which will operate in excess of current UK & international standards to reduce harmful nitrous oxide emissions.

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Firms developing three Fleet Solid Support ships for Royal Fleet Auxiliary have been urged to say how many British jobs will be created – and how much work carried out in the UK

The Confederation of Shipbuilding and Engineering Unions has demanded to see plans outlining how UK workers and firms will benefit from the deal. The CSEU’s maritime chairman Matthew Roberts, a GMB union national officer, has written to Harland & Wolff, ship designers BMT and Madrid-based Navantia, S.A., S.M.E calling for answers.

He has asked for copies of the “UK Content Plan for Fleet Solid Support” and “your Social Value and Training Plan”.

In the letter, seen exclusively by the Mirror, he says: “As you will appreciate, our members have been told that these documents set out the Team Resolute commitments to investment in the UK workforce and domestic supply chains, and – on that basis – sight of the plans is essential if confidence is to be built in the project across the wider workforce.

“We believe it is crucial that these plans are visible, understood and trusted by all stakeholders, including the workforce we represent. Engagement with the workforce and representatives will be vital to delivering a successful programme.”

The trio of 709ft, 40,000-tonne Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels will resupply Royal Navy aircraft carriers, frigates and destroyers with food, ammunition and explosives. When it announced the contract in November 2022, the Government claimed 1,200 jobs will be created in the UK. But at least 40% of the value of the work – worth about £640million – will go overseas, with some of the building taking place in Cadiz.

Hundreds of jobs in Spain are expected to be created or safeguarded – posts which unions believe could have come to Britain if a rival bid from Team UK, including BAE Systems and Babcock International Group, had won.

Mr Roberts told the Mirror: “Team Resolute must now publish their UK Content Plan and Social Value and Training Plan so they can be held to account on them. Firstly, UK workers need to see that the level of UK work on FSS is significant, as we have always been promised it would be when we learnt the work would not exclusively be within the UK. Secondly, we need to ensure there is no backsliding of work from the UK to foreign yards; work that is allocated and promised to UK yards such as Belfast and Appledore must be completed in these yards.

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The Dutch government has announced it will spend EUR60m ($63.6m) over the next two years to boost the nation’s shipbuilding industry as well as creating a National Maritime Manufacturing Industry Management Agency.

Around 45% of Dutch ships were built on home soil in the 1980s, a figure that has slipped to just 4% today, new government data shows with Asian yards able to churn out ships at prices that are up to 40% cheaper.

“The Netherlands has insufficient competitive construction capacity for naval ships and specialised work vessels,” a recent government study concluded.

“Our maritime manufacturing industry is wrongly regarded as a quiet asset,” said Marja van Bijsterveldt, who is spearheading the government’s focus on the shipbuilding industry. “Together with other countries in Europe, we have lost a large part of our global market share for commercial seagoing vessels to Asia in just a few decades. The Netherlands depends on ships for our safety, dry feet, energy transition, and prosperity. We can no longer afford the laissez-faire policies of recent decades.”

Dutch yards can take part in the coming green transition of the world fleet, the government has argued, citing data from UNCTAD which shows the global merchant fleet is now 22.2 years old, suggesting a significant replacement cycle will be needed by the end of the 2020s.

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Cammell Laird Shiprepairers & Shipbuilders Limited is joining forces with another shipyard owner A&P Group Limited to create a maritime powerhouse with a combined turnover of £188m.

With its shipyard based in Birkenhead, Cammell Laird’s most recent financial results showed annual revenues of £94m. A&P operates two shipyards in the North East of England and one in Falmouth in the South West. Its current turnover is also £94m.

Now both businesses will come under the umbrella of a new entity, APCL Group. The group will also include project management specialist A&P Australia and UK based Neway Industrial Services.

Cammell Laird and A&P already have a close working relationship and David Mc Ginley is chief executive of both companies. He will be CEO of the new entity.

This deal will not see a change of ownership of either business which will retain their individual identities. The ultimate parent company of Cammell Laird is Isle of Man-based Tokenhouse which is the parent company of ports and property giant The Peel Group.

This latest move means APCL will “stand before the market” as a much larger company. It will develop an “all of one” company approach to certain major contracts and will further the group’s ambition of becoming a tier one contractor.

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The Defence Procurement Minister Alex Chalk presided over the ceremony marking the start of construction on the future HMS Birmingham at BAE Systems’ Govan shipyard in Glasgow.

The event signified the beginning of work on the fourth of eight Type 26 frigates, with apprentice burner Ciaran Baillie and fabricator-plater Jamie Finnegan performing the steel cut.

The work, say BAE, is sustaining approximately 1,700 jobs in Scotland and 4,000 across the UK maritime supply chain. The company plans to hire an additional 400 tradespeople and 200 apprentices for the programme in 2023.

The first three Type 26 ships are in various stages of construction, with HMS Glasgow at BAE Systems’ Scotstoun shipyard for systems installation, HMS Cardiff being assembled, and HMS Belfast in early construction. The £4.2bn contract for the remaining five ships, including HMS Birmingham, demonstrates the UK Ministry of Defence confidence in the programme.

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Harland & Wolff Group Holdings PLC has said that it has submitted a planning application to extend its fabrication halls in Belfast, as part of a recapitalisation plan for the Fleet Solid Support programme.

The Fleet Solid Support programme refers to a £1.6 billion contract awarded at the end of last year to Team Resolute.

The company has told investors that its planning application was part of the recapitalisation plan for the FSS programme.

The application is for a 4,997 square metre extension to the existing fabrication halls, facilitating the automated fabrication of panels of up to 16 square metres that will be used for the programme, in addition to later projects.

Harland & Wolff currently operates from fabrication halls in Belfast, and it is these halls that will incorporate the majority of the its upgrades. It said that as part of this plan, demolition works on certain existing structures in the yard will be undertaken before the end of the month to facilitate the construction of the new facilities.

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