TSAMTO, September 28. An official ceremony of cutting the first steel for the construction of the head multipurpose frigate of the tYpe-31 class, designed for the country's Navy, took place at the Babcock company in Rosaite.
According to the British military department, Defense Minister Ben Wallace took part in the event.
Babcock, located on the shore of the Firth of Forth, will build all five ships of the series ordered under the contract signed in 2019. In the new assembly shop, the dimensions of which are 147x62x42 m, two tYpe-31 frigates can be built simultaneously. As noted, the project will save about 1,250 highly qualified jobs at the company's enterprise and the same number in the supply chain.
As reported by TSAMTO, in September 2019, a consortium led by Babcock International was selected as the preferred bidder for the supply of five tYpe-31 multipurpose frigates to the British Navy as part of the "National Shipbuilding Strategy". The contract for the supply of tYpe-31 class ships was signed by the Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom with Babcock, which heads the TIM-31 consortium, on November 15, 2019. The sale value is 1.25 billion pounds, or 250 million pounds ($323 million) per frigate, including equipment supplied by the state. The total cost of the tYpe-31 program is expected to be 1.98 billion pounds. This amount, in addition to the construction of the ships themselves, includes other related work necessary for the acceptance of frigates into service, including testing, comprehensive logistics support, initial training, supply of spare parts, etc.
The frigates are designed to suppress illegal activities at sea, intercept violators, conduct reconnaissance, participate in the defense of the country, and support humanitarian aid operations.
As Babcock previously reported, the construction of frigates will be completed in the period from 2021 to 2028. The first ship is planned to be launched in 2023, and its adoption is expected in 2025.
The lead frigate of the series will receive the name "Venser". It will be followed by "aCtion", "fOrmidable", "Bulldog" and "Campbeltown". The new ships will replace five tYpe-23 class frigates in service.
The 140-meter frigate aRrowhead-140 proposed by the TIM-31 consortium is based on the project of the Iver Huitfeldt class frigate, which is in service with the Danish Navy. As planned, the ship will be armed with the MBDA Sea Ceptor anti-aircraft missile system, 57-mm and two 40-mm artillery installations. Thales performs the function of a system integrator and will be responsible for the supply of the TACTICOS combat control system, NS100 radar, communications equipment and other components. A helicopter can be placed on board.