As an island nation, Australia depends on sea lines of communication and maritime trade. For us, there can be no economic or national security without maritime security, underwritten by a robust industrial base. This is especially the case now, when an uncertain and intensifying regional security landscape calls for the rapid uplift of the nation’s naval fleet to ensure it is large and lethal enough to deter, deny, and defeat modern, multidomain threats to the nation’s interests.
In a matériel context, lethality is underwritten by the availability of ships and submarines (sustainment) plus the ability to add capability (shipbuilding) to meet the needs of the current and future threat environment. Australia must reinvigorate its national shipbuilding and sustainment industry to one that can deliver the ships and submarines we need, when we need them, while also keeping its fleet-in-being operationally effective. The 2024 Australian National Defence Strategy (NDS) was accompanied by an Integrated Investment Program (IIP) through which the government allocated AUD $330 billion over the next decade to deliver required defence capabilities. The largest portion of this investment (38 percent) is for the uplift of maritime domain capabilities.
The funding allocated in the IIP will support the delivery of nuclear-powered submarines through the AUKUS partnership. The Royal Australian Navy (RAN) has never operated nuclear submarines before, and they will significantly enhance the range and endurance of our undersea warfare, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and deterrence capabilities, and, consequently, Australia’s contributions to regional and global security. The AUKUS program also will deliver nuclear-capable shipbuilding and sustainment infrastructure, which will serve the Navy and our allies operating in the southern hemisphere.
New Ships and Weapons Coming
The IIP includes significant enhancements to our surface combatant fleet, as well. Construction has commenced on the first of six Hunter-class frigates, which will be commissioned as HMAS Hunter, at the Osborne Precinct. The same precinct recently delivered NUSHIP Arafura, lead ship of the
Arafura-class offshore patrol vessels, with the remaining five vessels in various stages of construction at both the Osborne and Henderson shipyards. The final two Evolved Cape-class patrol boats are scheduled to be accepted by the Commonwealth this year.
The government also has committed to 11 general-purpose frigates, eight of which are programmed to be built at Henderson. Defence will investigate options for six large optionally crewed surface vessels to further enhance the surface combatant fleet. Overall, more than 70 vessels will be constructed or upgraded in Australia as part of this intergenerational pipeline of naval construction projects.
Weapon systems in the fleet are being enhanced to deliver greater lethality. The three Hobart-class air warfare destroyers will receive an upgrade to the Baseline 9 Aegis combat system, and the Tomahawk weapon system, Naval Strike Missile, and Standard Missile-6 will significantly boost the offensive and defensive capabilities of our fleet. HMAS Brisbane’s successful test firing of the Tomahawk land-attack cruise missile in December 2024 was a notable achievement, demonstrating the power of RAN–U.S. Navy cooperation and greatly enhancing interoperability. In the future, we also plan to deploy Tomahawks in Virginia-class submarines (to be acquired through the AUKUS partnership) and the Hunter-class frigates, subject to feasibility.
A significant investment has been made to extend the life of our Collins-class submarine fleet. These six submarines are the nation’s most important strategic assets, providing the most potent deterrent in our arsenal. Although not nuclear armed or powered, the diesel-electric submarines’ stealth, endurance, and freedom of maneuver give potential adversaries in the Indo-Pacific region cause for pause when considering aggressive action in any area where submarines may be operating. These boats also give Australia a strategic surveillance capability in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, making them a vital intelligence capability. While these vessels are aging, continuous upgrades have ensured they remain highly capable and lethal platforms. Our sustainment partners in industry are a critical enabler for this capability, and there is a national security imperative attached to keeping the Collins-class boats operational until the Virginia-class submarines join the fleet in the early 2030s and the AUKUS-class SSNs are introduced in the early 2040s.
Sustaining the Current Fleet
Continuous sustainment is what keeps a navy at sea. As in all navies, every ship, submarine, and aircraft in the RAN requires a continuous cycle of maintenance and sustainment to enable rotational deployment of naval forces. The sustainment workforce therefore provides the vital lifeline to our fleet-in-being. On average, the RAN has spent AUD $3.1 billion per year over the past five years on sustainment. The age of our surface combatants and submarine fleet puts pressure on the budget—something that requires careful management. However, sustainment is not an unexpected expense. Just as regular servicing and maintenance is a standard operating cost of a motor vehicle, sustainment is the price of a reliable, capable, credible, and lethal naval force that is ready and able to defend its nation’s interests in the maritime domain.
This long list of new builds, upgrades, and sustainment projects is a significant undertaking, and the key to success is the robustness and scalability of our national shipbuilding and sustainment enterprise. In December 2024, the Australian government released the Naval Shipbuilding and Sustainment Plan: Evolving the Enterprise to provide a roadmap for growing and upskilling the enterprise workforce, developing resilient supply chains, and delivering critical shipbuilding and sustainment infrastructure.
This includes building a nuclear-powered submarine construction yard at the Osborne Naval Shipyard in South Australia and establishing a consolidated Commonwealth-owned Defence Precinct at the Henderson Shipyard in Western Australia. These are substantial, generational investments in our sovereign defence industry that will ensure we have the critical infrastructure and expertise to conduct battle-damage repair should competition in our region evolve into conflict. The service of the Australian industrial base during World War II, including major repairs to battle-damaged U.S. and British warships at Cockatoo Dockyard in Sydney, reminds us of the need for a resilient industrial base during times of hardship.
Virginia-class submarines join the fleet in the early 2030s and the AUKUS-class in the early 2040s. Australian Defence Force
Challenges to Overcome
At the same time, mobilization of the national industrial base is not without difficulties. A shortage of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and trade-qualified people exacerbates the challenge of recruiting enough of the right people into the shipbuilding and sustainment workforce to deliver naval shipbuilding and sustainment projects on time and on budget. This problem cannot be solved by Defence or the shipbuilding industry alone—it is a national problem with roots in education, and its solution must involve inspiring the current and next generations of Australian students to undertake STEM and trade studies. To that end, the Naval Shipbuilding and Sustainment Plan includes a number of initiatives, including allocating 4,000 new government-supported university places in STEM fields, establishing skills training and employment pathway programs in key Australian states and territories, and collaborating with state and territory governments to deliver fee-free technical training to thousands of Australians through the National Skills Agreement. This whole-of-nation approach to addressing workforce challenges is an important step in the right direction.
Another key challenge to the delivery of shipbuilding and sustainment projects is industrial action (labor union movements), which often disrupts construction and sustainment activities. The right to industrial action is a cornerstone of our Western liberal democratic values. However, we need to strike a better balance between maintaining the rights and protections of workers and delivering capabilities vital to national security.
These are complex challenges, and at least part of the solution lies in elevating the national security imperative in the public consciousness. Protecting Australian national interests during a period of competition or conflict is a whole-of-nation endeavor, and the vital role of the national shipbuilding and sustainment enterprise cannot be overstated. I am in constant communication with enterprise leaders, and I make it my business to remind them of the importance of their work.
Another part of the solution is an ongoing and predictable pipeline of work to build industry’s confidence to grow the workforce at the rate required. The NDS, IIP, and Naval Shipbuilding and Sustainment Plan pave the way for continuous naval shipbuilding and sustainment, and they should alleviate uncertainties that previously have detracted from the full mobilization of the industrial base.
A Decade of Transformation
This is a period of great transformation for the Royal Australian Navy and the nation, and our shipbuilding and sustainment workforce is a critical enabler. Without them, we cannot fulfill our obligations to the Australian people, our allies, and our security partners. The mission is clear: build and sustain naval vessels and capabilities to secure Australia’s access to the sea, which underwrites our national economy, national security, and sovereignty. Our nation must grow its shipbuilding and sustainment workforce, industry, and infrastructure. To achieve this, the people of Australia must believe the work done by the national shipbuilding enterprise matters—that there is no work more important to our national security. The task of building and sustaining the RAN is equally as important as the work being done by those in uniform, who serve in our ships, submarines, and aircraft at sea.
While the shipbuilding and sustainment enterprise grapples with complex challenges, it also is taking advantage of opportunities to grow the national industrial base. The results will deliver critical naval capability for Australia’s immediate maritime security needs and evolve the enterprise to enable continuous shipbuilding for the long term. This is a not only a transformational time for our Navy, but also a nation-building effort for Australia. It is an exciting time for those of us in the Navy and for our colleagues in the defence industry.
