The Submarine Delivery Agency (SDA) has released its Annual Report and Accounts for the 2023–24 financial year, marking its sixth report since the agency’s establishment in 2018.
Tasked with overseeing the UK’s submarine lifecycle, from design to disposal, the SDA reported significant milestones across its portfolio despite challenges linked to historical underinvestment and the residual impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Key Milestones in 2023-24
This year marked pivotal advancements in both maintenance and new construction. Among the highlights:
- HMS Vanguard Returns to Service: After a seven-year deep maintenance period at Devonport, HMS Vanguard resumed its journey toward operational reintegration following successful sea trials.
- End of Trafalgar-Class Maintenance Cycle: The deep maintenance period of HMS Triumph concluded in July 2023, marking the end of the Trafalgar Class maintenance cycle.
- Fleet Time Maintenance Increases: Improved productivity and alternative working patterns enabled record levels of maintenance while submarines remained under Royal Navy control, ensuring operational readiness.
- Major Contracts Signed: A £560 million contract for HMS Victorious’ maintenance and a £750 million investment to enhance Devonport’s infrastructure were awarded, supporting both current and future submarines.
- Astute and Dreadnought Programmes: HMS Anson completed sea trials and is preparing for operational service, while HMS Agamemnon underwent pre-launch tests. The Dreadnought programme saw continued investment, with the first submarine on track for entry into service in the early 2030s.
- SSN-AUKUS Developments: Contracts totaling £4 billion were signed with BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce Submarines, and Babcock International, advancing the design phase of the next-generation SSN-A attack submarines.
- Decommissioning Progress: The dismantling of the decommissioned HMS Swiftsure began in Rosyth, with completion expected by 2026.
In his introduction, SDA Chair Jonathan Simcock highlighted the agency’s commitment to delivering capable submarines for national defence.
“Our mission is the delivery of available and capable submarines for the Royal Navy in defence of the nation,” Simcock noted, emphasizing the agency’s role as part of the Defence Nuclear Enterprise (DNE). Despite challenges, he pointed to achievements such as advancing the Astute and Dreadnought programmes and the return of HMS Vanguard to service as proof of the SDA’s resilience and focus.
Looking ahead, Simcock underscored the importance of the SDA’s new five-year strategy, launched in April 2023, aimed at improving operational delivery and enhancing organisational effectiveness.
In August 2023, the SDA signed a ‘Heads of Terms’ agreement with Babcock International to improve performance through collective investment in infrastructure and workforce skills. Additionally, the agency celebrated milestones in its Barrow-in-Furness facilities, including the successful commissioning of the D58 building and the movement of the largest submarine section in over 30 years.
The SDA plays a vital role in the Defence Nuclear Enterprise, supporting the UK’s strategic deterrent and maintaining the Continuous at Sea Deterrent. This includes partnering with industry leaders to manage some of the most complex engineering projects in the world.
Sophistry in that report – no mention of the attack boats tied up alongside, for a teeny while.
However, if Labour were serious, they have a report detailing deterrent spend and the means to bring it back under Treasury funding leaving defence a new budget. Thoughts?
Agreed, leave the defence budget as is for the moment and the Treasury takes the deterrent back as a cost to the Treasury. I am not sure the cost of the deterrent is I think about 6-7% of the MoD budget per year for the next 30 years.
If “the deep maintenance period of HMS Triumph concluded in July 2023”, why has it already been pensioned off 18 months later? Given that Astute is likely to accompany CSG 25, shouldn’t Triumph be held in readiness for a year, or at least until Anson or Artful becomes fully available?
Mmm the fact that Triumph is now finally being decommissioned whilst the backlog of Astute class maintenance is still ongoing speaks volumes. A Nuclear Submarine is unlike other types of equipment you can’t just decide to extend the life beyond a certain point and she’s at that point, they really have wrung the last life out of her.
To extend her life would require a pre planned LOP(R) and given her age that would be nigh on impossible. She has the last operational PWR1 and a z core so has a lifex of 14/15 years and none have been built for decades, RR now builds PWR3 and there’s no going back, so as last refuelled in 2010 that’s it she’s done. Besides which guess where her crew will be going ?
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Yes, of course. Thank you for the reminder.
It looks at least that the sub fleet is in fairly good condition for the future. We do have some current issues due to a lack of docking facilities but again it seems that they are planning for the future. Now if we could get say an extra two or three SSN-As making a SSN fleet of 10, possibly without the VPM inserts to operate in the North Atlantic/Norwegian Sea area that would be an added bonus. Finacially it could be possible as with the Aussies and Brits building the almost the same sub (unless MoD suits get involved) there should be a finacial saving due to numbers. That saving could mean extra money to build a few more.
We could come up with a novel way to get this past the bean counter, call the extra subs pool submarines. What I mean with the term pool sub is that if or when a Aussie sub goes into deep maintenance one of the pool subs goes to Aus to keep the fleet numbers up. The same when a RN sub would go into deep maintensnce a pool sub replaces her. Or the pool subs could be used for training either of the future sub officers or for the ASW surface ships. Or in times of crisis available for tasking by either nation. It’s only an idea but I do think the RN and for that matter all service arms need to come up with ideas to pass the bean counter.
Oh please bury that idea, when a Bean counter gets it into their head that you a save overall numbers with a common pool they just reduce the numbers. See Helicopters, Harriers and F35 for details.
You are right about it being an opportunity to expand the RN fleet to 10, it’s all down to the rolling orders on a tight but economical drumbeat.
The most significant announcement this week was down under, they confirmed that AUKUS and its structure will be generational as in that between us we will build the SSN(A) boats then move onto the next generation to replace them.
As always this Country (Politicians mostly Civilian)fail to take on board the Professional advice being offered and unfortunately They collectively could not organise a ‘Piss up in a Brewery ‘History as they say always ‘Remember’s God help us !!!
(GSK)🥃