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Spanish state-owned shipbuilder Navantia has agreed to buy Harland & Wolff, rescuing the ailing Titanic builder whose parent company has been in administration since September.
The UK’s Department for Business and Trade said the deal, which is subject to regulatory approval, would save 1,000 UK jobs at H&W’s four shipyards in Northern Ireland, Scotland and England, but it gave no financial details.
Navantia in 2022 secured a £1.6bn contract to build a trio of ships for the UK Royal Navy with H&W and has been in discussions for months to buy the beleaguered company, which fell into administration twice in five years and was hobbled by high debts.
The Spanish group had been pushing to increase the value of that Fleet Solid Support ship contract but did not confirm whether it had succeeded in clinching improved terms.
“This deal is a major vote of confidence in the UK from Navantia,” Jonathan Reynolds, business secretary, said in a statement, predicting it would “bring future investment into shipbuilding right across the UK”.
John Healey, defence secretary, said it was a “major investment into the UK’s industrial base . . . and will provide opportunities for future naval work at Harland & Wolff’s shipyards across the country”.
The GMB and Unite unions, which represent workers at H&W’s shipyards, welcomed the deal but said they remained in the dark about the financial details, despite calls on Thursday with Navantia and H&W.
“Without a steady drum beat of work, these yards will continue to struggle,” said Matt Roberts, GMB national officer.
George Brash, Unite regional officer, said the union would “now engage with the detail of the deal to ensure that our members’ demands have been met and workers have the full protections afforded to them”.
Unite supported an 11-week occupation of the Belfast yard in 2019 to defeat the last threat of closure.
Russell Downs, the restructuring expert brought in as H&W interim executive chair, did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
H&W has previously said it employs 1,200 people across the four yards, but no job losses were confirmed. Roberts said the union had a “verbal agreement with Navantia that all jobs will be protected and they said more jobs will be created as well”.
Industry figures said they believed Navantia could use its purchase of H&W to vie for a big upcoming Royal Navy multi-role support ship contract.
In a statement, Navantia said it expected the purchase to be completed next month. The company declined to comment on the upcoming contract.
The crisis at H&W, which built the Titanic ocean liner a century ago, has been an early test of the Labour government’s approach to industrial strategy.
H&W’s parent company had its Aim-listed shares suspended in July, just three days before the UK general election, after a mounting cash crisis.
Ministers had been urging Navantia to buy H&W after ruling out financial support for the shipbuilder.
Hilary Benn, the UK’s Northern Ireland secretary, heralded a “bright future ahead” for “an iconic, internationally renowned company with a long and proud history”.
But some at H&W said experienced staff had already left or were about to leave, leading to a potential shortage of skilled engineers.
