The opening of a new fabrication hall at Harland and Wolff has been hailed as a major milestone in the construction of three new support ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA).

It has been described as the centrepiece of Navantia UK’s £157 million investment programme across its four UK shipyards.

It will support the construction of three new fleet solid support ships for the RFA and 900 skilled jobs and apprenticeships in Belfast.

The newly extended hall has been described as adding 5,000 square metres of fabrication space, fitted with new cranes, robotic plasma-cutting technology and a new mechanised panel line.

Navantia UK is also refurbishing Samson and Goliath, the two distinctive yellow cranes that dominate the skyline of Belfast’s docks as part of a programme of modernisation.

Minister for defence readiness and industry Luke Pollard said: “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.

“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.

“Navantia’s £157 million investment across its UK yards shows what sustained investment in shipbuilding delivers: good jobs, growing skills, and the support ships our Navy needs.”

Minister for Northern Ireland Sarah Owen said: “Standing in Navantia’s state-of-the-art fabrication hall is a great reminder of the scale of UK Government defence investment in Northern Ireland, with £460 million spent here by the Ministry of Defence in the last year – equivalent to £240 per person.

“This impressive facility is a key milestone in the UK Government’s fleet solid support programme, which has invested around £100 million in Belfast alone.

“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.”

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.

“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.”