Work Begins on New Nuclear Submarines for the UK

The shipbuilding company Babcock has confirmed that it has begun work on the SSN-AUKUS nuclear submarines for the United Kingdom.

The UK Defence Journal reported on this.

The company has signed contracts for the initial components of the weapon control and launch systems. This information was revealed in the preliminary financial report for the year ending March 31, 2025.

“Our Mission Systems business was awarded two significant contracts in FY25. These included a contract for Long Lead Items for the Astute replacement, Submersible Ship Nuclear AUKUS (SSNA), enabling us to place orders for the first elements of the Weapon Handling and Launch System,” the company stated.

This contract is one of the first known contributions from British industry to the SSN-AUKUS program, under which the United Kingdom and Australia will receive a new class of nuclear-powered submarines armed with conventional weapons.

SSN-AUKUS is a next-generation class of nuclear-powered, multi-role submarines that are expected to enter service with the Royal Navy in the late 2030s and with the Royal Australian Navy in the early 2040s.

The new class will replace the UK’s Astute-class submarines and Australia’s Collins-class submarines. In total, the UK plans to build up to 12 state-of-the-art SSN-AUKUS submarines. Australia, in turn, intends to build 5 SSN-AUKUS submarines and purchase 3 Virginia-class nuclear submarines from the United States.