Babcock International has completed a £200M refurbishment of number 9 dry dock used for the deep maintenance of Vanguard-class submarines and the facility is now ready to accept HMS Victorious.

HMS Vanguard occupied number 9 dry dock from 2016 to 2023 during a much-delayed refit that ended up taking 7 years. Following her extended stay, the facility required maintenance and upgrade work ready to take the next boat in line. Babcock says the updates to 9 dock will allow the next refit to be completed more quickly. Details are sketchy but the project included repairs to concrete structures, recertification of cranes and the installation of an Alternative Mechanical Handling package that will improve working efficiency.