Babcock Tallies Contract to Refit UK Nuclear Submarine

Babcock International Group and the UK’s Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA) have agreed a full cost recovery contract worth an estimated £560 million to undertake the planned deep maintenance and life extension program for HMS Victorious, one of the UK’s Vanguard Class nuclear submarines.

The multi-year life extension program will deliver HMS Victorious back to the Royal Navy modernized and improved, enabling it to continue operational patrols well into the 2030s. Work on the submarine is already underway, following a commitment by the Department to authorize early-works from July 2023.

The program is being delivered at Babcock’s facility in Devonport where a major infrastructure upgrade program is underway. HMS Victorious is the second Vanguard Class submarine to undergo a life extension package at Babcock’s Devonport facility.

Defense Secretary, Grant Shapps said, “In an increasingly dangerous world, it is crucial that we continue to invest in one of our most important assets, our nuclear deterrent.”  

Second Sea Lord Vice Admiral Martin Connell said, “The overhaul of HMS Victorious will allow the boat to carry out deterrent patrols until the next generation of submarines, the Dreadnought-class, enter service.”