Member Info for stokey12

Si_Derman ref 19.16 post good thing I do not believe in conspiracy theories and also that I am not paranoid but I find it interesting that the contingency plan involves the consortium that failed in the tender because they submitted a non compliant bid.

Broomtree ref 16.50 post true but the Defence Secretary is also the shipbuilding tsar and as such is supposed to be promoting British shipbuilding so it does not look good when his own department buy British.

This from UK Defence Journal https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/mod-awards-906m-contract-for-intercept-and-escort-craft/ the text of the article is

'The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has awarded a contract worth £906 million for the design, build, and support of Intercept and Escort Craft.

The contract was awarded to Zodiac Milpro, located on Bis Rue de Lyon in France.

This project, overseen by the MoD Boats Team, aims to deliver new Intercept and Escort Craft to various users on behalf of Navy Command Headquarters (NCHQ).

The initiative seeks to replace existing craft variants, aligning with the strategy to reduce the number of variants in operation while simultaneously upgrading the current capabilities.

More on this when I have it.'

Looks like the MoD is buying French boats.

Just saw this on LinkedIn seems that HARL has someon new helping with business development

Jennie Danton 3rd+ Strategic Business Development Professional

17h •

Harland and Wolff will be showcasing at the Combined Naval Event from May 21st to May 23rd 2024! Come and see us at stand B12 to learn about our latest advancements in building and supporting future naval vessels, infrastructure, and floating dry docks at home and at reach. Can't wait to see you there! #HarlandandWolff #CNE2024 #makingwaves

The link for this is https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7196601029147115521/

I am inclined to think that the reason for Consuela's animosity towards JW relates to his past business dealings. In particular that either her or a close family member loss their job in the closure of a business run by JW.

The departure has been updated on the Belfast Harbour website to 19th May at 12noon I am not sure if the change is weather related.

Lottie123 ref 09.18 post In my original post I was actually referring to the evidence session next Wednesday at 9.30am in respect of the Inquiry into Defence Spending in Northern Ireland. The Defence Procurement Minister will be one of thee officials giving evidence see my 05.45 post.

On your point about a corporate buyer I do not think the BoD would agree to a an offer of 9p. If they did it should be rejected by the shareholders. At 9p jW would be suffering a significant loss. Also you need to facor in that the various assets would not all be of interest to one buyer. So anyone buying the whole of HARL would likely end up with non core assets to dispose of.

Just sending this back up as it might get buried.

Chrisatrdg ref 08.37 post I must most respectfully disagree with you a chocolate teapot is more useful than the current Defence Secretary.

Having listened to the video in the link I posted earlier and contrary to what the Member for North Durham and some of the press said I do not think the provision of the EDG would amount to a subsidy for the purposes of the Subsidy Control Act 2022 so is not state aid. I appreciate that sounds odd. That said it has to be remembered that UKEF is not providing any actual money. The money is being provided by the banks who are not public authorites for these purposes as far as I am aware.

LSE03 ref 07.44 post That entry has been there for at lest a week or more I had assumed that it was the conclusion of the work as can be seen from this article https://www.travelmarketreport.com/articles/Margaritaville-at-Sea-Reveals-2025-Four-to-Seven-Night-Itineraries-for-Newest-Ship it is due to start its maiden voyage from Tampa Bay next month.

Halfpenny ref 07.39 post do you have a copy of the article from behind the paywall?

In view of the references in the press yesterday and the issue of state aid being an issue with the EDG. One initial point to make is that the EU state aid rules do not apply to the EDG. The current rules on state aid is the Subsidy Control Act. For a summary can be found in this video https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=7eb581a8-9d6b-414c-b63b-97e10347f104&utm_source=Lexology+Daily+Newsfeed&utm_medium=HTML+email+-+Body+-+General+section&utm_campaign=Lexology+subscriber+daily+feed&utm_content=Lexology+Daily+Newsfeed+2024-05-16&utm_term=

PippiLongStockin ref 06.58 post If the funding is blocked then HARL could seek to extend the current debt with Riverfort or even increase it. As an alternative they could seek an investor with the US being a possible source. If they were to look for an investor then it could say sell a 25% stake in H&W Belfast or one or more of the other sites. As I see it with a buyout depending who the buyer is there may be regulatory issues.

On Wednesday 22 May the committee will be having an evidence session in relation to its Inquiry into defence spending in Northern Ireland. The session will start at 9.30am. As I will be on Day 3 of four days of Teams meetings can I ask someone else to report back on this. The witnesses will be

James Cartlidge MP

Minister for Defence Procurement at Ministry of Defence

Brigadier Andrew Muddiman

Regional Commander (NRC) at Scotland and Northern Ireland (NRC SNI)

Barney Kistruck

Director for Defence Industrial Strategy at Prosperity and Exports (DISE)

I expect the comment by the Defence Secretary during the recent general debate on defence that they will be publishing annual spending for Northern Ireland will come up. Depending on how the Minister answers we might see a bump in the share price. This is especially likely to be the case in my opinion if the Minister says any figure for spend.

AimMaster2018 ref 14.42 post I see you are flip flopping again like you did over the FSS contract.

NigelHaemoglobin ref 13.22 post Thanks for that.

The part i found most interesting is this 'With the facilities that the Company has in is portfolio, it has substantial capacity, not only to undertake the FSS Programme and Falkland Islands Port Replacement Project in tandem, but also to build multiple vessels and structures at the same time. The Company's physical capacity is complemented by its highly skilled and growing workforce, underpinned by its unprecedented investment in apprenticeships and workforce development.'

Note it says build not refurbish.

NigelHaemoglobin ref 13.14 post can I ask what does Rule 11 say.

LSE03 ref 13.07 post this says nothing mmore than what was in the Times article. We need a trading update.