Press Release
30th April 2002
Aircraft Carrier Order Would be
"Good News for Greenock" - McNeil
Two new Royal Navy aircraft
carriers could be assembled at the Inchgreen dry-dock in
Greenock, it was confirmed today. MSP for Greenock &
Inverclyde, Duncan McNeil, has welcomed the news and says he and
MP David Cairns will work to push the case for the Greenock
facility at every level of government.
He was speaking following today’s announcement by Enterprise Minister, Wendy Alexander, that "the project is likely to result in a large number of jobs across the UK and in Scotland in particular."
The £2.9 billion order, for two new 50,000 tonne aircraft carriers, is currently out to tender. Two potential prime contractors, Thales Naval Systems and BAE SYSTEMS PCO, have been identified. While both bids are likely to bring substantial employment benefits to Scotland, the BAE SYSTEMS bid identifies Inchgreen as a suitable candidate for final assembly.
Mr McNeil said:
"Bringing such a huge, prestigious contract to Greenock would be a great news for our local workforce and local economy.
"And there is little doubt that we have a strong case.
"Our pioneering work in hooking up the two halves of super-tankers, gives us vital experience in this type and scale of assembly work. Further, as the Minister herself recognised, Inchgreen has the existing physical capacity to accommodate the new carriers and is located close to a large highly skilled pool of labour.
"The final decision, of course, will be made by the Ministry of Defence and I will work hard with my Westminster colleague, David Cairns, to ensure that the successful bid foresees a role for Inchgreen.
"From the Scottish Parliament’s point of view, it will have to play its part ensuring that we have the skills and workforce to make Inchgreen the natural choice."
Two large aircraft carriers are at the early stages of being procured to replace current the MoD’s three existing Invincible class carriers.
The current Invincible class carriers – HMS Invincible, Ark Royal and Illustrious – weigh in at 20,000 tonnes, each accommodate 22 aircraft and have a crew of 685. They were originally designed for Cold War anti-submarine warfare in the North Atlantic and entered service in the early 1980s. They have seen much active service and will be progressively decommissioned from 2010.
The two new aircraft carriers are amongst the largest warships ever built for the Royal Navy. Design studies are ongoing, but current work suggests that the carriers would be around 50,000 tonnes (two-and-a-half times the weight of the Invincible class carriers) capable of accommodating up to 50 aircraft and require a crew of 750. Procuring these two massive carriers will create or sustain thousands of jobs across the UK.
The MoD, assisted by independent
consultants, will make a judgement about the alternative
strategies presented by the two. In early 2003, the MoD will
select a preferred prime contractor who will then produce robust
and cost effective proposals for the build of carriers towards
the end of 2003. The contract for the building of the carriers is
not expected until 2004.
ENDS
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