Australian ship builder Austal has been awarded a $63 million contract by the National Australia Bank to construct two further Cape Class Patrol Boats.
Under the agreement, the two vessels will be delivered to the National Australia Bank in mid-2017 and subsequently chartered to the Department of Defence for a minimum term of three years.
Austal will also be responsible for sustaining the vessels in accordance with the in-service support offering provided to the existing fleet of eight Cape Class Patrol Boats designed and constructed by the company and owned by the Australian Border Force.
Austal said it is providing a residual value guarantee to the National Australia Bank, which may be exercised at the conclusion of the charter term.
“In the event that the Department of Defence returns the ships at the end of the charter and National Australia Bank exercises the residual value guarantee option, then Austal will purchase the vessels at a pre-agreed price,” the company said in a media statement.
CEO Andrew Bellamy said the contract reflected the quality and performance of the existing fleet of ships that Austal recently delivered on time and on budget.
“It is also a terrific vote of confidence in Austal and the products we design, build and sustain at our Henderson shipyard in Western Australia. As Australia’s only ASX-listed prime contractor we are very well positioned to support the Commonwealth in its future continuous ship building plans,” Mr Bellamy said.
The company has also been contracted to deliver two High Speed Support Vessels to the Royal Navy of Oman from its Henderson shipyard.
“The two corvette-sized vessels we are building at our Australian shipyard for export to Oman next year are progressing well and demonstrate that Austal is internationally competitive when it comes to advanced manufacturing,” Mr Bellamy concluded.
