The Australian Government will hold a number of naval shipbuilding industry briefings across regional Australia to give local industry an opportunity to see how they can contribute to Australia's future shipbuilding efforts.
“The industry briefings will focus on the next generation of naval surface ships; specifically the Future Frigate and Offshore Patrol Vessels, which represent a $39 billion investment by the Australian Government,” said Minister for Defence Industry, Christopher Pyne.
“The Future Frigate and Offshore Patrol Vessel programs will directly create over 2500 jobs for Australians indirectly supporting the jobs of many thousands more. To ensure this occurs, it is critical that we provide Australian companies with opportunities to enter the supply chain."
The Future Frigate program will replace eight ANZAC class ships with nine future frigates, while the Offshore Patrol Vessel program is replacing thirteen Armidale Class Patrol Boats with twelve Offshore Patrol Vessels.
The Offshore Patrol Vessels are due to begin construction Adelaide in 2018 and will move production to Henderson, Western Australia in 2020. The Future Frigate program is slated to begin construction in 2020 in Adelaide.
“Where possible and practical, Australian companies should have the opportunity to benefit from the economic advantages of a thriving domestic defence sector," the Minister said.
“Importantly, this will contribute to the ability of the Australian Defence Force to respond to our national security requirements.”
Industry participants will be provided high level updates on the progress of the two shipbuilding programs and how they can get involved through registering with the newly-launched Centre for Defence Industry Capability (CDIC).
“The CDIC is a partnership between Defence and the Department of Industry, Innovation and Science to support Australian industry by offering practical advice and assistance needed to work with Defence,” he said.
“Almost 400 businesses have registered for shipbuilding updates through CDIC’s portal to date.”
The briefings will be held in Geelong, Geraldton, Nowra, Bunbury, Whyalla, Newcastle and Cairns, beginning in Geelong on April 7.
[HMAS Pirie, one of the Armidale Class Patrol Boats. Photo: Chris Houghton/RAN]