UK to announce £1bn contract for nuke submarine reactors

PanARMENIAN.Net - A £1bn contract for reactors to power the next generation of Britain's nuclear submarines is set to be announced this week, The Guardian said.

The defense secretary, Philip Hammond, has agreed the deal as part of government plans to replace the Vanguard fleet that carries the Trident nuclear deterrent, according to the Sunday Telegraph.

The money will be used to build two reactor cores, one of which will be used for the seventh Astute-class attack submarine and one for the first of the next-generation nuclear deterrent submarines.

It will also be used to fund an 11-year refit of the Rolls-Royce plant at Raynesway, Derby, which will carry out the highly specialized work. The deal will directly create 300 jobs.

Replacing Britain's nuclear deterrent has proved a flashpoint for the coalition, with Liberal Democrats opposed to like-for-like replacement and Conservatives committed to a full renewal of the UK's fleet of four Vanguard-class submarines by 2028.

The first of the four Vanguards had been due to leave service in 2022, but the government extended the vessels' lives as part of the 2010 defense and security review. Final decisions about ordering replacements do not have to be taken until 2016, after the next general election.

Last month Hammond awarded contracts worth £350m to UK companies to design the next-generation submarines.

The final "main gate" decision on Trident renewal will not be made until 2016, but the long lead times mean the reactor contracts must be signed now.