Royal Navy signs £135 million deal with BAE Systems to maintain torpedoes
The Torpedo Repair and Maintenance deal secures around 315 jobs across the UK
The Royal Navy has signed a new £135 million contract with BAE Systems to maintain and repair its torpedoes.
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It covers the Navy’s Spearfish and Sting Ray torpedoes used by submarines, surface warships and maritime patrol aircraft to protect UK waters and maintain its nuclear deterrent.
The Torpedo Repair and Maintenance (Tram) deal secures around 315 jobs across the UK, including 150 highly skilled engineering roles, and a further 165 in BAE’s UK supply chain.
The engineering and technician roles include 100 in Portsmouth and 50 more across Edinburgh, Chelmsford and near Glasgow.
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The Government has said this is part of its commitment to use defence spending to drive economic growth and deliver well-paid, long-term jobs in advanced manufacturing and engineering across the UK.
Defence minister Luke Pollard said: “This is defence spending doing exactly what it should – keeping our country safe while securing 315 skilled jobs and creating new opportunities across our country.
“We are proud to be backing British jobs, British skills and British industry.”
The three-year contract runs from July 2026 to June 2029.
The contract bridges to a longer-term programme, Whitehead2, which will deliver a modernised torpedo support solution from 2029 onwards.
Rear Admiral Matt Stratton, who is the Navy’s director naval acquisition, said: “This contract extension ensures the Royal Navy retains a safe, reliable and continuous torpedo support capability.
“It is a critical enabler of our operational readiness and directly supports the UK’s continuous-at-sea deterrent.”
Richard Murray, who is director lethality and protect at the National Armaments Director Group Materiel, said: “This contract extension secures continued, reliable support to the UK’s torpedo capability.
“Bringing together the Navy, National Armaments Director Group and industry as a single team has delivered real, tangible results for UK defence.”
Scott Jamieson, who is managing director of BAE Systems’ maritime and land defence solutions, said: “Since 2019 we have delivered consistently high levels of torpedo availability for the UK Armed Forces, supporting both the successful entry into service of Spearfish and the ongoing operational readiness of Sting Ray.
“As a trusted partner to UK defence, we are proud to underpin the nation’s continuous at sea deterrent and anti-submarine warfare capability through exceptional reliability, availability and performance.”