BAE Systems will deliver the five year Future Maritime Support Programme (FMSP) alongside the Ministry of Defence for the Royal Navy in Portsmouth.
The firm say here that in March, BAE Systems was selected by the MOD to deliver the Ship Engineering Delivery & Management contract at Portsmouth Naval Base.
A joint venture between BAE Systems and KBR, named KBS Maritime, was awarded the Hard Facilities Management & Alongside Services contract at Portsmouth.
Together the two contracts are valued up to £1.3 billion.
“Our strong past performance and our ability to deliver the Royal Navy’s future requirements were instrumental in winning the two largest Portsmouth FMSP contracts,” commented Jon Pearson, Warship Support Director for BAE Systems’ Maritime Services business.
“Under previous contracts we’ve helped the MOD transform Portsmouth Naval Base, delivering major infrastructure improvements and reducing carbon emissions by 65% over the last 15 years, while at the same time improving the availability of the Royal Navy’s warships. Under FMSP, we will continue to transform to meet the Royal Navy’s evolving requirements and deliver with the same pride and emphasis on performance, innovation and availability.”
As well as improving ship availability, BAE System say they have helped the MoD to deliver a number of major improvements to the base under Maritime Support Delivery Framework, with the end goal of creating a 21st century naval base fit to support the UK’s Carrier Strike Group, all while maintaining operational tempo.
These improvements include:
- Development of ‘North Corner’, the aircraft carrier centre of specialisation, and support to regeneration of jetties, allowing the home-basing of HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales
- Bringing the carriers into service, providing support to the vessels and preparing them for exercises and sea trials
- Preparation and inaugural deployment of the UK’s Carrier Strike Group
- Development of the Type 45 centre of specialisation, including regeneration of 14 and 15 Dock and installation of the iconic 68 metre tall 14 Dock crane
- Refurbished C & D lock to accommodate increased vessel transit to 3 Basin / Harbour.
- Design and development of the 13Mw combined heat and power centre, installation of 1.5Mw of solar power, 3Mw large scale battery storage, installation of electric vehicle charging points, and the introduction of 48 electric vans
- New Thunderer workshop, the amalgamation of workshops under one roof to drive efficiencies
- Installation of Vessel Tracking Management System harbour radar for vessel tracking
Development of Royal Navy Reservist facility HMS King Alfred on Watering Island
Improvements to security infrastructure - Support to base’s heritage building, including refurbishment of Long Row/The Parade
- Ongoing development of the Royal Navy War Fighting Centre
- Ongoing installation of the Queen Elizabeth Class Forward Logistics Centre
KBR do a lot of work for the American defence infrastructure and is supported by the American government, I suppose the same can now be said of BAE now that it has its fingers in a lot of pies. I have no doubt that this will improve the RN base at Portsmouth but I am just wondering if the profits these two company’s make off of an MoD contract will help support the American defence industry rather than the UK’s defence industry. This sound’s a bit negative on what is on the whole a positive article but I am trying… Read more »
Babcock have the same contracts for supporting Clyde and Devonport, so there is competition. KBR (US) and Sodexo (French) UK subsidiaries and a few other are also involved in some of the supporting contracts.
Hello James, What I am asking is where is the MoD budget ending up, as a few years ago local vetted companies would have taken on the various contracts whose employees were paying income tax in this country and whose profits were taxed in this country there by helping to pay for the MoD budget. Now the multi national companies like the ones you have pointed out can afford to under-cut the local smaller companies but a lot of the skilled workforce do not pay taxes in this country and whose profits are not taxed in this country (if at… Read more »
The MOD budget pays for goods and services. The profit on those contracts goes to the companies involved. What they do with it – marketing, investment, R&D and dividends to shareholders – is their business, but I imagine with a growing defence budget it makes sense to invest in the UK to win new work.
I hope so James,
Reading work involved, it’ll be pretty difficult to outsource the work overseas. All the defence work I do has to be UK employees and vetted, even if its subcontracted. Lastly BAe undercut someone, that’ll be a first 🙂
You are right, what was I thinking, why would the select few companies bother to undercut any one when they know they will get the job.
Its the Hollywood view of the world that all big companies have some sinister agenda, the facts are that 99% of companies are not up to no good. The 1% make the news and skew our perception of the corporate world and influence script writers 🙂
I do believe that is going to be the theme for the follow on 007 bond film
Pompey docks as Bond film set, I wonder if they’ll need extras 🙂
A calm sensible comment amongst the usual “military-industrial complex” rubbish. If it weren’t for the defence manufacturers we’d be defending ourselves with bows and arrows.
How much less men does the Royal Navy need now? All this out sourcing our millitary now does must cut a few thousand jobs.
Or more people on the front line rather than running stores?
I appreciate that some of the non physical jobs used to be useful for those recovering from injuries etc but there always seemed to be a group of the same people in those spots.
You dont see Army personnel constantly driving around in the same tanks/AFVs none stop year after year after year on deployments or taskings.
The RN still needs to maintain the sea/shore ratio to give its people a break from being deployed and working on a ship. There are always going to be shore jobs that allow this and they will also aid in career progression.