Vital update on future of Plymouth's Devonport dockyard

The £1bn rebuild of parts of Devonport dockyard is continuing with work starting at two of its docks. In September 2024, dockyard operator Babcock International Plc reopened 9 Dock following completion of “the most significant package of infrastructure work since the early 2000s”.

In an update to investors the company said the upgraded facility will support the delivery of the £560m programme to extend the operational life of Vanguard class nuclear submarine HMS Victorious. Babcock said work would now focus on huge upgrades to 10 Dock and 15 Dock in Plymouth.

In a statement to the Stock Exchange the company said: “Following the award of the manufacturing phase contract in 2024, the programme to upgrade 10 Dock with a new dock, berth, and logistics and production support facilities is progressing well.

"Further infrastructure upgrades are underway at 15 Dock, in preparation to deliver the Base Maintenance Period (BMP) of the first Astute Class submarine to Devonport. These projects will enable our Devonport teams to support the Astute fleet for deep maintenance cycles over the coming years.”

The UK is replacing its nuclear submarines with new ones. Astute Class submarines are currently taking over from the Trafalgar Class and the future Dreadnought Class will replace the Vanguard Class.

The Babcock statement said: “We continue to make progress in meeting the current and future requirements of the UK MoD and Royal Navy and are working closely with them to jointly develop long-term strategies for people, infrastructure and transformation.

“We are delivering substantial upgrades to existing critical infrastructure at Devonport to support the UK's future capability through a Major Infrastructure Programme (MIP). “

The company said the maintenance, life extension and facility improvements will support the Vanguard Class submarines “which are critical in supporting the UK's Continuous at Sea Deterrent and securing the long-term defence of the nation”.

It added: “We are entering our fourth year of the Future Maritime Support Programme, through which we sustain the entirety of the UK's submarine fleet, and where we work with the customer to enable continuous improved delivery into the future.”

Just last week, the Government announced the scrapping of three Devonport warships: HMS Albion, HMS Bulwark and HMS Northumberland. But Luke Pollard, MP for Sutton and Devonport and under-secretary for state for the armed forces, stressed the future of the dockyard was bright with new amphibious Multi-role support ships (MRSS), Devonport-based Type 26 frigates and enough submarine work to keep the dockyard busy for the next 70 years.

In its report detailing the company’s half-year results, Babcock stressed other key work was being carried out in Plymouth - particularly around training the workforce of the future. The statement said: “We are a key industrial partner on the UK's Nuclear Skills Taskforce, taking a leading role in helping to secure the critical nuclear skills needed across the defence and civil nuclear enterprise.

“As part of our ongoing commitment to securing skills, we established the Babcock Engineering and Nuclear Skills building at City College Plymouth. The modern facility will enhance our growing workforce's capabilities by continuing to build a new pipeline of talent, while upskilling the existing workforce on the complex skills required to perform deep submarine maintenance.

“Officially opened in September 2024 by the UK Minister for Defence Procurement, Maria Eagle, it marks the next phase of the Babcock Skills Academy, which is focused on addressing the current and future nuclear skills demand for our defence programmes and supporting the national nuclear endeavour across the defence and civil nuclear enterprise.”

This month, Babcock announced that profits had leaped to nearly £170m after progress on the rebuild of Devonport’s submarine dock. Figures for the six months to the end of September, showed Babcock’s underlying operating profit had risen to £168.8m from £154.4m reported in September last year, and up from £121.7m in 2022.

Revenue had gone up to £2,408.9m, from £2,177m in September 2023 and £2,144m the year before, with net debt slashed to £385.6m from £492.5m in September 2023 and £1,039m in September 2022. With operating profit up from £144.2m to £183.8m, the company called it a “strong set of results” .

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