More jobs joy at Clyde shipyards with share of patrol ship order

Mar 10 2009

SHIPBUILDERS on the Clyde are celebrating another jobs boost after securing a share of a s150million order for three offshore patrol vessels.

BVT's Scotstoun yard will build one vessel and carry out a "considerable" amount of work on the second  while a third vessel is being built at BVT's yard in Portsmouth.

The vessel being switched to Glasgow was to have been built at Portsmouth too.

But the south coast yard has seen a "significant" increase in work on two giant aircraft carriers for the Royal Navy, the firm said.

The good news comes just a fortnight after the Clyde shipyards were handed extra work on the Royal Navy's two new supercarriers - Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales - safeguarding jobs for a further six years.

The patrol vessels have been ordered by the Trinidad and Tobago government and the contract includes training and long-term maintenance.

The 90-metre vessels can accommodate 50 fully-equipped troops and have the ability to conduct boardings at sea and carry out helicopter operations.

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.

The delivery strategy for the third and final ship remains under review, said BVT.