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LONDON (BNS): UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) has awarded contracts worth £350 million to UK companies to design the next generation of nuclear deterrent submarines.

The first Successor submarine to be delivered in 2028 will replace the Vanguard Class submarines which currently carry the UK's nuclear deterrent - Trident.

According to a UK MoD news report, the ministry has awarded contracts to BAE Systems, Babcock and Rolls-Royce. Engineers at the companies will work with the MoD on the design of the new submarines which will use a new nuclear propulsion system.

"The contracts announced today with BAE Systems, Babcock and Rolls-Royce symbolise an important step towards renewing our nation's nuclear deterrent into the 2060s," Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said in the statement.

The largest contract, worth £328 million, has been awarded to BAE Systems Maritime - Submarines, which will work on the overall submarine design. Babcock has been awarded £15 million and will focus on designing parts of the in-service support. More than £4 million has been paid to Rolls-Royce, which will be responsible for the integration of the reactor design.

In May 2011, the UK MoD announced approval for the design phase, costing £3 billion. The latest contracts announced are part of that investment. These are contracts for the design of the Successor submarines, not the missiles that they will carry, the report added.