Titanic’s Builder, The Iconic Harland & Wolff To Be Sold To Spain’s Navantia

Harland and Wolf, the famous shipbuilder known especially for building the Titanic, will soon be owned by Spanish State-owned Business Navantia.

The latter decided to purchase the shipbuilding company after it was placed into bankruptcy in September for the second time in 5 years, though the deal is subject to approval.

If approved, it will secure at least a thousand jobs at the shipbuilder’s 4 shipyards, one in Belfast, Northern Ireland, two others in Scotland and the fourth in England.

The deal is vital for the Royal Navy as Harland and Wolff is a subcontractor and a part of a consortium which were given a major contract for constructing new ships in which Navantia’s UK division is the main contractor.

Business and Trade Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said that the deal is a major vote of confidence in the U.K. from Navantia which will secure the future of U.K. shipbuilding and also protect 1000 jobs across the nation, bringing in future investment into the shipbuilding sector in the U.K.

When asked if the government sweetened the deal for Navantia by modifying the terms of the contract to deliver 3 Royal Navy Support Ships, Reynolds said there had been a minor revision to the contract to include more support from the government.

The reaction from the public was mixed though some thought that the takeover of an iconic shipyard by Spain’s national shipbuilder represented an example of the United Kingdom’s industrial decline, however, it is not so for the shipbuilder’s workforce who breathed a sigh of relief.

In 2019, the company’s owner thought it did not have a future but was placed into an administration. However, it was then purchased by a UK company which lacked the expertise and money to revive it.

The company will once again go into the hands of an experienced shipbuilder who has the financial backing and experience.

References: AP News, BBC

Source: Maritime Shipping News