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Clyde yard secures navy contract Clyde yard secures navy contract
(about 2 hours later)
Shipbuilders on the Clyde have landed an order to build at least one patrol boat for the Trinidad and Tobago navy. Two Glasgow shipyards have won a share of a £150m order to build three patrol boats for the Trinidad and Tobago navy.
Trinidad and Tobago has British Government support for the £150m contract to build boats and train crews to tackle Caribbean smugglers. BVT's yard at Scotstoun will build one vessel and carry out work on another, with the help of the Govan yard.
The contract is for a total of three ships, which were all due to have been built at Portsmouth. The firm's Portsmouth facility had been due to build all three ships but fell behind on the work.
But the Portsmouth yard fell behind on the work, and at least one boat will now be built at Scotstoun in Glasgow. The contract will help the Clyde yards maintain staff levels while they bridge work between Royal Navy Type 45 destroyers and two aircraft carriers.
The first vessel is scheduled to be delivered to Trinidad and Tobago later this year. The patrol vessels have been ordered by the Trinidad and Tobago government to tackle Caribbean smugglers.
Both the Scotstoun and Govan yards are now part of BVT, the company which also owns the Portsmouth yard. The contract includes training and long-term maintenance support.
The work will help the two Clyde yards maintain their staff levels while they wind down work on Type 45 destroyers and start cutting steel for two giant Royal Navy aircraft carriers. Each 90-metre vessels will accommodate 50 fully-equipped troops and have the ability to conduct boardings at sea and carry out helicopter operations.
Industry sustainability
BVT said switching construction of the second ship to the Clyde, where work has already begun on the vessel, helped balance workloads across its sites.
Scott Jamieson, BVT's Trinidad and Tobago programme director, said: "This move shows BVT's ability and commitment to use its scale and scope to ensure delivery of future naval capability to its customers and to ensure the long-term sustainability of the maritime industry in the UK."
Work on the first ship is already "well progressed" in Portsmouth, and the second ship will be launched at Scotstoun later this year for delivery in 2010.
BVT said the delivery strategy for the third and final ship was under review.
Scottish Deputy First Minister and Govan MSP, Nicola Sturgeon, said yards in Scotland were winning orders on the basis of the workers' "formidable skills".
"Shipbuilding plays an important role within Scotland's manufacturing base and it is clear, in all circumstances, the industry can have a bright future," she added.