Australia has announced a two-decade investment plan to expand a shipyard in Western Australia as a maintenance hub for its nuclear-powered submarine fleet under the AUKUS partnership.
Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said that the plan “will underpin tens of billions of dollars of investment in defense capabilities” over the next 20 years and create about 10,000 local jobs.
An initial investment of 127 million Australian dollars ($85 million) will cover feasibility studies and upgrading works for the Henderson shipyard facility over the next three years.
The shipyard will also assemble new landing craft for the Australian Army and new multipurpose frigates for the navy.
This would be a critical next step in delivering continuous naval shipbuilding in Western Australia while providing depot-level maintenance and a contingency capability for the country’s nuclear-powered attack submarine fleet.
AUKUS Security Partnership
Signed in 2021, the AUKUS trilateral security partnership involves Australia, the UK, and the US.
The partners developed a plan to equip Australia with nuclear-powered submarines while combining their efforts on technology sharing against threats in the Indo-Pacific.
By 2027, as part of the agreement, the Henderson naval base will host rotations of US and UK submarines: one UK Astute and four US Virginia class submarines.
Earlier this month, the AUKUS partners tested their ability to remotely operate unmanned vessels from over 10,000 miles (16,093 kilometers) away.