Premier and Minister for State Development, Trade and the Antarctic, Jeremy Rockliff, has congratulated Elphinstone following their successful joint bid with Hanwha Defense Group to be part of the Land 400 Phase 3 program.
In a news release, Rockliff described the recent development as “fantastic news” that will increase investment and create new jobs on the North West coast.
“It’s a great outcome for Tasmania and demonstrates the success that advanced manufacturers in our State can achieve, and of the success of our Government’s support for this important industry,” the minister noted.
He went on to say that this is just the beginning of the Hanwha and Elphinstone collaboration; both companies hope to reach much greater global export potential together, offering excellence in defence products around the world.
The minister said the government intends to build on these successes so that more companies may profit, and that Tasmania’s $5 million investment, made in collaboration with Elphinstone, can create a new $23 million, top-notch facility that will increase the availability of global defence contracts.
“It’s another important step in opening up even more business opportunities for our world-class defence industries, to the benefit of Tasmanian jobs and our economy,” Rockliff concluded.
Madeleine Oglivie, the minister for advanced manufacturing and defence industries, claimed that Hanwha’s bid for the $5 billion to $7 billion project to provide 129 infantry fighting vehicles to the Australian Army included Elphinstone and other Tasmanian firms CBG Systems and Penguin Composites.
“While full details of the contract are still to be released, this major project will likely be Tasmania’s single biggest ever defence supply contract and demonstrates the confidence in Tasmania’s defence industry and signals even bigger things to come,” she said.
She added, “We have confidence in Tasmanian industry and will always stand shoulder to shoulder with them to build Tasmania’s economy. Today’s success is a result of hard work and industry development and I congratulate Elphinstone.”
Oglivie also stated that the recent news continues the collaboration between Hanwha and these creative local businesses on the LAND 8116 Huntsman Self-Propelled Howitzer project, which until now had been the state’s largest defence contract win.
According to her, Tasmania’s advanced manufacturing capabilities and commitment to quality are being recognised and taken seriously, as shown by Hanwha’s choice to include Tasmanian industry in these types of projects.
“Importantly, the more Tasmanian companies that get involved in the defence supply sector, the more it increases the visibility of our capabilities and products and the more contracts it promises to attract,” Minister Oglivie concluded.
