Australia said it would spend 3.9 billion Australian dollars to progress the construction of a shipyard that will help deliver nuclear-powered submarines under the trilateral AUKUS defence pact with the U.S. and Britain.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the 3.9 billion as a down payment to deliver the new shipyard in Osborne, a suburb of Adelaide in South Australia. Official projections put the total cost of the build at 30 billion Australian dollars over the coming decades, he said.
Announced in 2021, AUKUS is Australia’s largest-ever defence investment and will see U.S.-commanded Virginia-class submarines based in Australia from 2027, several Virginia submarines sold to Australia from around 2030, and Britain and Australia building a new class of AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described the amount as a “down payment” on the facility in Osborne, near the southern city of Adelaide
“Investing in the submarine construction yard at Osborne is critical to delivering Australia’s conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines,” Albanese said in a statement.
An estimated AU$30 billion is expected to be spent on the facility in the long term, according to official projections.