New Belfast fabrication hall to support construction of Fleet Solid Support ships

Belfast welders, fabricators and crane operators are set to benefit from a record-breaking year of defence investment in Northern Ireland, as Navantia UK opened the new Resurgent Hall at the iconic Harland & Wolff site in Belfast today.

The opening marks a major milestone in the construction of three new support ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA), cementing Belfast’s role at the heart of the UK’s shipbuilding renewal.

Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry Luke Pollard officially opened the fabrication hall, the new centrepiece of Navantia UK’s £157 million investment programme across its four UK shipyards. Around £100 million is being invested in Belfast alone.

How the new fabrication hall will enable delivery of Fleet Solid Support ships for the Royal Navy

Supporting over 900 skilled jobs and apprenticeships, the newly extended hall adds 5,000 square metres of fabrication space, fitted with new cranes, robotic plasma-cutting technology and a new mechanised panel line. Navantia UK’s Harland and Wolff site will now be able to deliver the Fleet Solid Support (FSS) programme.

Alongside investment in the new hall, Navantia UK is refurbishing Samson & Goliath – the two yellow cranes that dominate the skyline of Belfast’s docks – rounding off a programme of modernisation that will expand the yard’s capacity and increase its capability to deliver complex builds.

Luke Pollard MP said: “Few sights in the UK are more evocative of our industrial heritage than the Samson and Goliath cranes and it’s fitting that this new hall sits on the shoulders of these iconic giants.

“Belfast continues with its proud shipbuilding history by building the modern shipbuilding capability the country needs today, with this new fabrication hall at the heart of it. Navantia’s £157 million investment across its UK yards shows what sustained investment in shipbuilding delivers: good jobs, growing skills and the support ships our Navy needs.”

Navantia UK is prime contractor for the FSS programme and is leading on fabrication and final assembly of the three FSS ships, RFA Resurgent, Reliant and Resourceful, backed by £1.6 billion of Ministry of Defence (MoD) funding. The ships will replenish Royal Navy task groups at sea, directly linking today’s investment in Belfast to the operational capability of the fleet. Work is progressing on schedule and within budget, with all three ships due to enter service in the early 2030s.

Why investment in Belfast’s shipbuilding legacy will help cement the city’s role within the UK’s defence industry

Minister for Northern Ireland Sarah Owen said: “Standing in Navantia’s state-of-the-art fabrication hall is a great reminder of the scale of UK Government defence investment in Northern Ireland, with £460 million spent here by the Ministry of Defence in the last year – equivalent to £240 per person.

“Navantia is building on Belfast’s historic shipbuilding legacy while supporting hundreds of skilled jobs and apprenticeships, ensuring that it remains at the heart of the UK’s defence industry while boosting economic growth.”

Since completing its acquisition of Harland & Wolff, Appledore, Methil and Arnish sites in January 2025, Navantia has grown into one of the UK’s leading shipbuilding employers.

Supporting more than 1,300 jobs and over 340 apprentices across Northern Ireland, England and Scotland, it has committed to creating 750 apprenticeships by 2030.

Navantia UK CEO, Donato Martinez, said: “Shipbuilding is returning to Belfast. We are turning Harland & Wolff into one of the most advanced shipyards in Europe. Our new fabrication hall will be equipped to build state-of-the-art ships to serve and defend the UK for generations to come.”

Record levels of investment in Northern Ireland’s defence sector

The opening comes as recent figures show MoD investment in Northern Ireland’s defence sector rose by 63% in real terms in 2025/26, to £464 million, the highest level since records began.

Keith Bethell, NAD Group Maritime Director, said: “The opening of the Resurgent Fabrication Hall is a clear sign that growth in UK shipbuilding is happening right now, in Belfast. This investment is renewing our industrial capability, creating skilled jobs and apprenticeships and strengthening the supply chains that underpin our national resilience.”

UK naval shipbuilding is backed by the Defence Investment Plan (DIP), which commits £298 billion of UK defence investment over the next four years.