Harland and Wolff has officially opened a new fabrication hall at its Belfast shipyard, which its owners say will be equipped to build ships to defend the UK “for generations to come” and help construct three support ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Navantia UK, which completed its takeover of the shipyard in 2025, is funding the work as part of a £157m investment in four UK shipyards.
The hall, which will be known as Resurgent, will add 5,000 sq m of manufacturing space to the Belfast yard, according to the Press Association. The shipyard's giant yellow cranes, nicknamed Samson and Goliath, are also being refurbished as part of the investment programme.
Harland & Wolff was founded in 1861 and was once one of Northern Ireland's biggest companies, employing 35,000 people at its peak during World War Two. It has been placed in administration a number of times in recent years despite major government investment. In 2025 it was acquired by Navantia UK, a British firm linked to Spain's state-owned shipbuilder Navantia; the takeover deal covered the Harland and Wolff yards in Belfast, Appledore in Devon, Methil in eastern Scotland and Arnish on the Isle of Lewis. The Belfast fabrication hall has been described as the centrepiece of the £157m investment in the four sites.
Speaking ahead of the opening ceremony, Navantia UK chief executive Donato Martinez said: "Shipbuilding is returning to Belfast. We are turning Harland & Wolff into one of the most advanced shipyards in Europe. Our new fabrication hall will be equipped to build state-of-the-art ships to serve and defend the UK for generations to come."
He added: "We've named it Resurgent for a reason. Jobs, investment and activity are resurgent in shipbuilding. Belfast is at the heart of that revival, and the fleet solid support programme is the first of many projects we aim to deliver here for the Ministry of Defence."
According to the Press Association, the Royal Fleet Auxiliary shipbuilding contract will support 900 jobs and apprenticeships in Belfast.
The UK's Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard, welcomed the opening. "Few sights in the UK are more evocative of our industrial heritage than the Samson and Goliath cranes, and it's fitting that this new hall sits on the shoulders of these iconic giants," he said. "Belfast continues with its proud shipbuilding history by building the modern shipbuilding capability the country needs today, with this new fabrication hall at the heart of it."
He said Navantia's plan "shows what sustained investment in shipbuilding delivers - good jobs, growing skills, and the support ships our Navy needs".
Northern Ireland Minister Sarah Owen said: "This impressive facility is a key milestone in the UK government's fleet solid support programme, which has invested around £100m in Belfast alone." She said Navantia is "building on Belfast's historic shipbuilding legacy while supporting hundreds of skilled jobs and apprenticeships, ensuring that it remains at the heart of the UK's defence industry while boosting economic growth."
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The opening is a visible test of whether the 2025 Navantia UK takeover translates into sustained work at a yard that has repeatedly gone into administration.
- The Royal Fleet Auxiliary contract, which the Press Association says will support 900 jobs and apprenticeships, ties Belfast's shipbuilding revival directly to UK Ministry of Defence spending.
- The £157m programme spans four yards, so how the Belfast hall performs will shape expectations for Appledore, Methil and Arnish.
Background
Harland and Wolff is one of Belfast's best-known industrial names, historically associated with ocean liners as well as warships, and the yard's Samson and Goliath cranes are landmarks on the city's skyline. The company's fortunes declined sharply after its mid-20th-century peak, and repeated financial troubles left it dependent on state support and, eventually, a new owner. Navantia UK's takeover in 2025 brought the Belfast yard together with three others in England and Scotland under a single defence-oriented owner, with the fabrication hall now presented as the centrepiece of that investment.
Key Perspectives
Donato Martinez, Navantia UK chief executive: says shipbuilding is returning to Belfast and that the company is turning Harland & Wolff into one of the most advanced shipyards in Europe, with the hall named Resurgent because jobs, investment and activity are resurgent.
Luke Pollard, Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry: says the new hall puts Belfast at the heart of building the modern shipbuilding capability the country needs, and that Navantia's plan shows what sustained investment delivers.
Sarah Owen, Northern Ireland Minister: describes the facility as a key milestone in the fleet solid support programme, which she says has invested around £100m in Belfast alone.
What to Watch
- Progress on the three Royal Fleet Auxiliary support ships, the first work the hall is intended to support.
- Completion of the refurbishment of the Samson and Goliath cranes.
- Whether the wider £157m programme delivers comparable activity at the Appledore, Methil and Arnish yards.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 11 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedHarland and Wolff officially opened a new fabrication hall at its Belfast shipyard.BBC Northern Ireland: “The shipyard marked the official opening of its fabrication hall on Monday”
- Partly supportedThe summary links the hall’s role in building three support ships to the £157m investment across four shipyards.BBC Northern Ireland: “The shipyard marked the official opening of its fabrication hall on Monday, which will assist in the construction of three support ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.”
- SupportedThe hall will assist in building three support ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.BBC Northern Ireland: “The shipyard marked the official opening of its fabrication hall on Monday, which will assist in the construction of three support ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.”
- SupportedNavantia UK is funding the work as part of a £157m investment in four UK shipyards.BBC Northern Ireland: “Navantia UK, which completed its takeover of Harland and Wolff last year, is funding the work as part of a £157m investment in four shipyards across the UK.”
- SupportedNavantia UK chief executive Donato Martinez said the hall would build ships to serve and defend the UK for generations to come.BBC Northern Ireland: “Our new fabrication hall will be equipped to build state-of-the-art ships to serve and defend the UK for generations to come.”
- SupportedMartinez said Resurgent was named because jobs, investment and activity were resurgent, and that the fleet solid support programme was the first of many projects Navantia UK aimed to deliver in Belfast.BBC Northern Ireland: “We've named it Resurgent for a reason. Jobs, investment and activity are resurgent in shipbuilding.”
- SupportedThe hall, to be known as Resurgent, will add 5,000 sq m of manufacturing space.BBC Northern Ireland: “It added the refurbished, extended hall - which will be known as Resurgent - will add 5,000 sq m of manufacturing space to the Belfast shipyard.”
- SupportedThe Belfast shipyard’s giant yellow cranes, nicknamed Samson and Goliath, are being refurbished as part of the investment programme.BBC Northern Ireland: “The Belfast shipyard's giant yellow cranes - nicknamed Samson and Goliath - are also being refurbished as part of a major investment programme.”
- SupportedThe Royal Fleet Auxiliary shipbuilding contract will support 900 jobs and apprenticeships in Belfast, according to the Press Association.BBC Northern Ireland: “The Royal Fleet Auxiliary shipbuilding contract will support 900 jobs and apprenticeships in Belfast, according to the Press Association (PA).”
- SupportedLuke Pollard said the new hall sits on the shoulders of the Samson and Goliath cranes and is at the heart of Belfast’s modern shipbuilding capability.BBC Northern Ireland: “Few sights in the UK are more evocative of our industrial heritage than the Samson and Goliath cranes, and it's fitting that this new hall sits on the shoulders of these iconic giants”
- SupportedPollard said Navantia’s plan shows what sustained investment in shipbuilding delivers: good jobs, growing skills and the support ships the Navy needs.BBC Northern Ireland: “The minister added Navantia's plan "shows what sustained investment in shipbuilding delivers - good jobs, growing skills, and the support ships our Navy needs".”
- SupportedSarah Owen said the facility was a key milestone in the fleet solid support programme, which had invested around £100m in Belfast alone.BBC Northern Ireland: “This impressive facility is a key milestone in the UK government's fleet solid support programme, which has invested around £100m in Belfast alone.”