Groundwork Begins on Successor Subs in UK
Groundwork has started on the renovation of a central shipyard complex that be used for outfitting future Royal Navy Successor submarines, British Forces News said.
BAE Systems had announced last year a $459 million modernization of the entire shipyard in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, in anticipation of government approval of the nuclear deterrent submarines, which will replace Vanguard-class vessels.
Prime Minister David Cameron confirmed earlier this week that Britain will order four new Successor submarines to replace the Vanguard-class of nuclear subs.
Construction is expected to take up to eight years and create thousands of new jobs. The work on the Central Yard Complex is the first step of the site's redevelopment programme. It's expected to be ready for operational use by the end of 2017.
Project manager Phil Aspden was quoted as saying in the North-West Evening Mail: "The commencement of the Central Yard Complex work is the culmination of three years’ planning and preparation. It marks a milestone as the first major development on the site in many years."