Pictured: HMS Spey delivering humanitarian aid stores to Tanna Island. HMS Spey is part of the second batch of Royal Navy River-class offshore patrol vessels (OPVs) operating abroad. Credit: UK Royal Navy.

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) awarded two contracts worth £320m to sustain the UK Royal Navy’s River-class offshore patrol vessels (OPVs).

BAE Systems won a contract worth £70m. The company is the original equipment manufacturer of the second batch of OPVs. However, this contract will now see the company support the preceding batch: HMS Tyne, Severn, and Mersey.

Go deeper with GlobalData

Data Insights

The gold standard of business intelligence.

Find out more

Related Company Profiles

View all

These three first-generation ships entered service in 2003 to secure the country’s borders, fishery protection, and other patrol missions. The legacy batch will be re-serviced until 2028, after it was intended to be decommissioned.

The Tyneside-based company, UK Docks and Marine Services, won the second contract for £250m. The company will support the requirements of the second-generation OPVs: HMS Forth, Medway, Trent, Spey, and Tamar.

The company will sustain the quintet until 2031. These OPVs operate abroad for years at a time. The batch is the face of the ‘Global Britain’ strategy at a time of a shrinking Royal Navy force level.

Competition and commercial solutions

According to the UK government’s Refresh to the National Shipbuilding Strategy there was a need for clear procurement intentions.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

“[F]or government shipbuilding spend to drive the transformation we seek, we must be clear about what we will value from our procurements and the effect we wish our spend to have.

“We must deliver long-term value for money for the taxpayer and competition will remain an important mechanism to achieve this, but this does not mean that we are driven to choose the lowest price.”

The government’s intentions are clear: extending the lifetime of the OPVs will sustain its maritime presence at home and abroad. The two contracts mark a policy of continuity rather than any discernible “transformation” to the Royal Navy.

That being said, this strategy has the benefit of creating competition between manufacturers to produce creative commercial solutions.

Head of future support acquisition in Navy Command, Graeme Little, stated: “I am delighted with the outcome of the commercial activity by colleagues in [Defence Equipment and Support].

“[They] have put in place effective, efficient, and commercially benchmarked support solutions that are critical to providing support to the OPVs.”