Babcock, in partnership with the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) and Seatrium, has supported the completion of critical maintenance work on HMNZS Aotearoa in Singapore.
“As the Strategic Maritime Partner to the New Zealand Defence Force, Babcock is proud to deliver this critical maintenance work for the Royal New Zealand Navy utilising our team of experts from New Zealand," Babcock Australasia CEO Andrew Cridland said.
In April 2025, Babcock and Seatrium, a global marine and offshore engineering company, established a strategic partnership focused on delivering specialised repairs and upgrades for RNZN vessels in Singapore.
“Small and medium enterprises have once again been vital to support this project from start to finish. Approximately 25 per cent of the value of this project was delivered by our supply chain partners from New Zealand who are key to our capability and delivery for our customer," Cridland stated.
“We look forward to continuing to work in collaboration with Seatrium, ensuring operational readiness for the Royal New Zealand Navy.”
HMNZS Aotearoa is the RNZN’s polar-class maritime sustainment vessel tasked with fleet replenishment, supporting fuel and equipment resupply operations in Antarctica, humanitarian relief functions and operating and training support. Due to the ship’s size, Aotearoa is too wide and too long to fit into the dry dock in New Zealand and every two-to-three years, requires routine out of water maintenance.
Approximately 100 New Zealand based supply chain partners supported Babcock’s work, including more than 20 partners on the ground in Singapore during the project.
As the Strategic Maritime Partner to the New Zealand Defence Force, Babcock has operated the country’s largest marine engineering and maintenance support facility in Devonport, Auckland.
Babcock has managed the RNZN dockyard and provided fleet material availability and support in New Zealand for decades, delivering maintenance, repair, overhaul, and engineering services to the RNZN fleet.