Babcock International Group has confirmed revised timescales for its first two Type 31 Inspiration Class frigates, announcing that HMS Venturer is now expected to float off in the first half of the 2025-26 financial year (FY26), with the second vessel, HMS Active, slated for the second half of FY26, UK Defence Journal reports.
The first half of financial year 2026 is April 2025 to the end of September 2026 and the second half of financial year 2026 is 1 October 2025 until 31 March 2026.
The company stated:
“We are progressing the build of the first three ships in the Type 31 Inspiration Class frigate programme. We expect the float-off of the first ship, HMS Venturer, to be in the first half of FY26 and float-off of the second ship, HMS Active, in the second half of FY26.”
The update comes as part of Babcock’s latest trading statement, which reported a stronger outlook for the full year ending 31 March 2025, driven by “double-digit organic growth in Nuclear and strong growth in Marine.”
Chief Executive David Lockwood commented:
“Today’s announcement demonstrates that successful execution of our strategy is continuing to deliver value for all our stakeholders. Our engineering skills and know-how are in ever greater demand and with significant opportunities before us, I look forward to further profitable growth.”
