UK orders five more counter-submarine frigates for $5 billion

LONDON — The Royal Navy is to receive five anti-submarine warfare frigates in a £4.2 billion ($5 billion) deal between the Ministry of Defence and warship builder BAE Systems announced on Tueday.

BAE already has three of the Type 26 warships in construction at its yards in Govan and Scotstoun, Scotland, and the new contract fulfills a longtime government commitment to field a fleet of eight ASW warships.

The first of the new class of frigates, HMS Glasgow, is expected to enter service by the end of 2028 and the delivery of all eight vessels should be completed by the mid-2030s.

The frigates will replace the bulk of a fleet of long-serving Type 23 warships.

Some of the Type 23 fleet is being replaced by Type 31 general-purpose frigates built by BAE rival Babcock at its Rosyth yard in Scotland.

Prime minister Rishi Sunak announced the new Type 26 deal during the G20 summit of world leaders currently being held in Bali, Indonesia.

The contract signing for the second batch of frigates had been expected, with the government recently confirming to Parliament that money for the additional five frigates had been ring-fenced.

The move effectively protects the program from defense cuts expected to result from a budget statement by the chancellor on Nov 17.

Media speculation here is the MoD is likely to see spending levels maintained but with no allowance for additional money to combat inflation levels in excess of 10%.

Long-lead items for this second batch of Type 26s, like engines and gearboxes, are already under contract.

In a statement Defence Secretary Ben Wallace said: “We are investing in our fleet to ensure our Royal Navy maintains its world-leading capability to protect and defend our nation at sea. This design has already been successfully exported to Australia and Canada , it’s already proved itself as a world-class maritime capability, securing thousands of UK jobs and strengthening alliances with our allies.”

The first Type 26 is due to enter the water at Govan by the end of this year ahead of being moved to Scotstoun for fitting out.

The construction contract for the initial batch of Type 26s was awarded to BAE in 2017 at a cost to the government of £3.7 billion, or $4.4 billion.

The program has run into difficulties, though, with a recent announcement by Wallace confirming the first of class was late and over budget.

In a written statement to Parliament on Nov. 2 Wallace attributed the delay to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, along with design and supply-chain problems.

The delay will add an additional £223 million ($265 million) to the overall cost of the program.

“Due to the impact of COVID-19, where the Govan yard was required to shut down for a number of weeks, and challenges typical of those experienced with the first-of-class ship, including finalizing the ship design and timely delivery of key new to service equipment, the department is forecasting a twelve-month delay to the Type 26 initial operating capability from October 2027 to October 2028,” the defense secretary said in the statement.

BAE Systems CEO Charles Woodburn said the contract secures the future of a critical U.K. industry.

“It underpins the ongoing investments we’re making in the skills, infrastructure and technologies needed to stay at the forefront of the maritime sector and to support the U.K. government’s national shipbuilding strategy,” said Woodburn.

One of those investments is the planned construction of a shipbuilding hall at Govan.

The company has submitted a planning application with local authorities to build a 175 meter long covered hall costing in excess of £100 million ($119 million).

The hall will allow two frigates being built in it simultaneously.

Subject to planning permission the third warship in the initial batch of vessels could be assembled in the new hall, said BAE officials.

The investment will be a major factor in the final five ships costing less and being delivered faster than previous vessels, the MoD said.

Andrew Chuter is the United Kingdom correspondent for Defense News.

伦敦——英国国防部与军舰制造商 BAE 系统公司周二宣布，英国皇家海军将获得五艘反潜护卫舰，交易金额为 42 亿英镑（50 亿美元）。

BAE 已在其位于格拉斯哥 Govan 和苏格兰 Scotstoun 的船厂建造了三艘 26 型战舰，而这份新合同履行了政府长期以来组建一支由八艘反潜战舰组成的舰队的承诺。

新型护卫舰的第一艘“格拉斯哥”号预计将于 2028 年底投入使用，所有八艘舰艇的交付工作应在 2030 年代中期完成。

这些护卫舰将取代大部分服役多年的23型战舰。

部分 23 型护卫舰正在被 BAE 的竞争对手巴布科克公司在其位于苏格兰罗塞斯的造船厂建造的 31 型通用护卫舰所取代。

英国首相里希·苏纳克在目前正在印度尼西亚巴厘岛举行的二十国集团领导人峰会上宣布了新的26型导弹交易。

第二批护卫舰的合同签署在意料之中，政府最近向议会确认，用于建造另外五艘护卫舰的资金已经专款专用。

此举有效地保护了该项目免受预计因校长 11 月 17 日的预算声明而导致的国防预算削减的影响。

媒体猜测，国防部可能会维持支出水平，但不会额外拨款来应对超过 10% 的通货膨胀率。

第二批 26 型坦克的长周期部件，如发动机和变速箱，已经签订了合同。

国防大臣本·华莱士在一份声明中表示：“我们正在加大对舰队的投入，以确保皇家海军保持世界领先的海上防御能力，保护和捍卫我们的国家。这种设计已经成功出口到澳大利亚和加拿大，它已经证明自己是世界一流的海上作战能力，保障了英国数千个就业岗位，并加强了与盟友的联盟。”

首艘 26 型护卫舰预计将于今年年底在戈万下水，之后将被移至斯科茨顿进行舾装。

2017 年，英国政府将首批 26 型护卫舰的建造合同授予了 BAE 公司，政府为此支付了 37 亿英镑，即 44 亿美元。

不过，该项目遇到了一些困难，华莱士最近宣布，第一堂课已经延期开课，而且超出了预算。

11月2日，华莱士在向议会提交的书面声明中将延误归咎于冠状病毒大流行的影响，以及设计和供应链问题。

此次延误将使该项目的总成本增加 2.23 亿英镑（2.65 亿美元）。

国防部长在声明中表示：“由于新冠疫情的影响，戈万造船厂被迫关闭数周，以及首舰建造过程中常见的挑战，包括最终确定舰艇设计和及时交付关键的新服役设备，国防部预计26型护卫舰的初始作战能力将从2027年10月推迟到2028年10月，为期12个月。”

BAE系统公司首席执行官查尔斯·伍德伯恩表示，该合同保障了英国一个关键行业的未来。

伍德伯恩表示：“这巩固了我们正在对技能、基础设施和技术进行的持续投资，以保持在海事领域的前沿地位，并支持英国政府的国家造船战略。”

其中一项投资计划是在戈万建造一座造船厂。

该公司已向地方当局提交规划申请，拟建造一座长 175 米的室内大厅，造价超过 1 亿英镑（1.19 亿美元）。

该大厅可同时建造两艘护卫舰。

BAE公司官员表示，如果获得规划许可，首批舰艇中的第三艘军舰可以在新厂房内组装。

国防部表示，这项投资将是最后五艘舰艇造价更低、交付速度更快的重要因素。

Andrew Chuter 是《防务新闻》的英国记者。