The Diplomat
The Ministry of Defence of the United Kingdom has selected the consortium ‘Team Resolute’, in which Navantia participates, as the preferred bidder for the Fleet Solid Support (FSS) programme, to build three logistic ships for the Auxiliary Fleet of the Royal Navy.
Team Resolute’ is a consortium formed by the UK companies Harland & Wolff, BMT and Navantia UK, the British subsidiary of the Spanish company Navantia.
The programme is valued at 1,600 million pounds sterling and Navantia’s shipyards in Puerto Real (Cadiz) will undertake part of the construction of the blocks that will make up the ships, together with those of Harland & Wolff in Belfast (Northern Ireland) and Appledore (west of the United Kingdom). Finally, the integration of the ships and their systems will take place entirely in Belfast.
“The contract aims to create 1,200 UK jobs, hundreds of apprenticeship opportunities and an additional 800 jobs in the UK supply chain,” according to the UK Ministry of Defence.
The three FSS vessels will be responsible for supplying solid stores and ammunition to Royal Navy ships deployed on missions. With a total length of 216 metres each, they will be the longest ships in the British fleet, second only to the ‘Queen Elizabeth’ class aircraft carriers.
The president of Navantia, Ricardo Domínguez, said after hearing the news that “it is an honour for Navantia and Navantia UK to participate in this programme, which will benefit from our excellence in shipbuilding and our capacity for programme management and technology transfer”.
The construction contract is scheduled to be signed in early 2023. Production of the blocks should start in 2025 and the three vessels will be operational in 2032.
