Partner Article

Shipyard wins major contract

A MULTI-MILLION pound order to refit two Offshore Patrol Vessels for the Bangladeshi Navy has been won by a North East ship repair yard.

A&P Tyne beat off fierce competition to bring the “prestigious contract” to the region.

The work will secure jobs at the Hebburn-based yard for A&P employees and local sub-contractors.

The ships, fitted with flight decks capable of supporting Sea King helicopters, have been laid up in Portsmouth Naval Base since their retirement from service in 2005. They will be towed up to Tyneside next month to undergo a massive overhaul.

Managing director of A&P Tyne, Stewart Boak, said: “We’re honoured to have been entrusted with this prestigious contract.

“We have a tremendous amount of work to deliver over the next three months to ensure the two ships are completed and handed over to the Bangladeshi Navy.”

The A&P Group has been negotiating to clinch the regeneration contract for the former Royal Navy vessels, the ex-HMS Dumbarton Castle and Leeds Castle, for the past six months.

Mr Boak and colleague John Paine, A&P Group Technical Programme Manager, flew out to Bangladesh to tie up the deal by signing the contract at a ceremony at the Naval headquarters in Dhaka.

Mr Boak, whose return was delayed several days due to the volcanic ash air crisis, said it was great to be bringing such a vital order back to Tyneside.

He said: “It is a tribute to all the partners involved that we now have the opportunity to carry out the work in the North East, securing employment for up to 100 staff and subcontractors in the face of the recession.”

Jarrow MP Stephen Hepburn said: “A&P are a first-rate company. I’m delighted for them, for their workforce and for the people of Tyneside. “This order will strengthen the position of Tyneside and proves that the area is going through a resurgence. “The creation of new jobs is fantastic news for the North East. With A&P leading the resurgence, Tyneside will go from strength to strength. “I’m delighted, this is wonderful news.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .