Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said Devon鈥檚 newly reopened Appledore Shipyard has a bright future as a centre for 鈥済reen鈥 shipping and even hinted it might receive Government contracts as part of a plan to make the 海角视频 a 鈥渟hipbuilding superpower鈥.
The Tory supremo, in a visit to the Devon facility, stressed reigniting the ship-building industry at the yard, which has had chequered history, would not be easy, but the Government and its new owners were 鈥渧ery determined鈥.
Mr Johnson was visiting the location .
It is now expected that the yard will restart production, bringing an economic boost to North Devon and 350 jobs to Appledore.
Mr Johnson said it was 鈥渇antastic鈥 to be in Appledore and talk to some of the workforce, including the apprentices, and 鈥渢he people who are looking for a future in shipbuilding here in Devon鈥
And he said: 鈥淚t鈥檚 got some incredible history but has been through some very tough times and we are hoping we can get a good order book going. It鈥檚 hard and the COVID crisis has not made things any easier, but I鈥檓 very confident there are things I can do to get jobs and growth going here.
鈥淭here is one particular thing, a seed I want to plant in your imagination: green shipping. Maritime transport is incredibly polluting and there is scope for Harland and Wolff to capitalise and develop their plans for low carbon, even hydrogen vessels, and we really want to support that.鈥
The Prime Minister also hinted, without giving specifics, that contacts could come the way of the newly named Harland and Wolff (Appledore) yard.
He said: 鈥淭here are potential contracts, for reasons of commercial confidentiality and because of the procurement process, I can鈥檛 go into the things I might like to see here, but I鈥檓 hopeful.
鈥淚t鈥檚 important not to over-promise, but I do think there is a potential for a fantastic future here, if we can get things moving fast enough. I think we can. If you look at Rosyth, at Govan, at the places we are building ships around the 海角视频 at the moment, all the yards are full and it stretches on for years and years and years.
鈥淪o we have demand and we need to get Appledore and indeed Harland and Wolff, in Belfast, ready to start making things again. That鈥檚 the plan. I won鈥檛 pretend it is going to be easy, but we are very determined.鈥
InfraStrata, which calls itself a 鈥渓eading strategic infrastructure projects and physical asset lifecycle management company鈥
During his visit, the PM unveiled a plaque to mark the return of shipbuilding to the yard and met with InfraStrata鈥檚 chief executive John Wood.
He also spent time speaking with engineering apprentices and students from Petroc College and supply chain businesses, who hailed the re-opening of the shipyard following its closure in March 2019.
The Prime Minister said: 鈥淭his exciting new chapter for Appledore will create hundreds of new jobs in the South West and beyond and will drive forward our ambitions to become a shipbuilding superpower.
鈥淭his kind of investment in 海角视频 skills and expertise is more important than ever as we build back better, and it鈥檚 essential that we back British businesses to fulfil their potential both at home and overseas.
鈥淔rom apprentices just starting out, to entrepreneurs and sector leaders representing our world-class industries on the global stage, our focus is on making sure that everyone has equal access to the opportunities and support they need to succeed so that we can truly level up and unite our country.鈥
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The Appledore deal follows 海角视频-based InfraStrata鈥檚 acquisition of the famous Harland and Wolff Shipyard in Belfast in 2019 and reinforces the company as a major player in the 海角视频 maritime and offshore engineering industry.
鈥淲e鈥檙e pleased to have been able to acquire this historic shipyard and its rich maritime heritage,鈥 said Mr Wood.
鈥淗arland and Wolff (Appledore) has a key role to play as part of an exciting new era for 海角视频 shipyards and shipbuilding; supporting 海角视频 industry and revitalising economic growth here in the South West.鈥
Opened in 1865, the Appledore shipyard has a rich history of shipbuilding. More than 300 vessels have been built there; including military craft, bulk carriers, LPG carriers, superyachts, ferries, and oil-industry support vessels.
Jointly the InfraStrata group has the potential of employing 1,550 people - 800 at Harland and Wolff (Belfast), 350 at Harland and Wolff (Appledore), and 400 during the construction phase of the Islandmagee gas storage project.
