Advertisement

U.K. Royal Navy orders 2 River-class Offshore Patrol Vessels

By Ryan Maass
The new River-class Offshore Patrol Vessels build on existing Royal Navy designs. Photo by BAE Systems.
The new River-class Offshore Patrol Vessels build on existing Royal Navy designs. Photo by BAE Systems.

LONDON, Dec. 8 (UPI) -- BAE Systems has received a $360 million contract to deliver two additional River-class Offshore Patrol Vessels to Britain's Royal Navy.

The deal adds two more manufacturing and support projects to the five-ship program, bringing the total contract value to $797 million. U.K. defense procurement minister Harriett Baldwin announced the agreement during a visit to the company's shipyard in Glasgow.

Advertisement

"This contract will deliver two more modern Offshore Patrol Vessels for the Royal Navy and safeguard vital shipbuilding skills and hundreds of jobs in Scotland," Baldwin said in press release. "Protected by a rising defense budget, the OPV program is an important part of the Government's £178 billion [$223 billion] plan to ensure our armed forces have the equipment they need."

Work on the two vessels, named Tamar and Spey, will involve more than 100 companies from Britain. The designs build on existing River-class ships with variants already used by the navies of Brazil and Thailand.

"Our investment in the latest digital design technologies and new processes is enabling us to deliver equipment of the highest quality at the lowest possible cost, helping to secure the long-term future of our highly skilled industry in the U.K.," BAE Systems Naval Ships managing director Iain Stevenson added.

Advertisement

Latest Headlines