Harland and Wolff placed in Administration

[Tomvart]

The famous Belfast shipbuilder Harland and Wolff has confirmed that the business is being placed into administration after declaring huge losses.

Looks like HMGs previous decision not to offer a financial deal has hurt the company somewhat, and has put the future of the FSS project at serious risk.

BBC article here

Potential buyers - Spanish builders Navantia and Babcock International. UK shipbuilding really is in a perilous state!

[Dartskipper]

Placing a quick repeat order for some badly needed Frigates and patrol craft might have helped. The plans must be on a shelf somewhere. We will need them one day, but where will we build them if the yards have been sold off or closed?

[170 Driver]

And what will we build them out of, if all the steel yards have gone ?

[Orbitaman]

There are other yards in the UK capable of building warships, so why spend millions keeping this yard afloat?
H & W haven't built a ship in over 20 years, so the yard is now basically a repair facility and nothing more.

[Tomvart]

Its the facilities at H&W, rather than the capabilities I had in mind, they have a dock that will take the QEC, additionally - there are very few remaining yards that can build warships that don't belong to either BAE Systems or Babcock...I thought that competition was healthy for industry?