The South Australian Government has partnered with HII Nuclear Australia, a newly formed entity of US-based shipbuilding company Huntington Ingalls Industries, to accelerate the development of South Australia’s defence industry workforce skills and supply chain.
SA Premier Peter Malinauskas and Deputy Premier Susan Close met with HII Nuclear Australia President Michael Lempke to sign the memorandum of understanding (MoU) during an industry brief in Adelaide.
As part of the MoU, the SA government and HII Nuclear Australia will collaborate with local companies, academia, and education providers, to help develop a skilled workforce and boost Australia’s industry capability.
One of the initiatives planned under the collaboration is the launch of workforce and skills interventions to increase the diversity of the STEM pipeline and address critical skills needs.
SA government and HII Nuclear Australia also plan on rolling out supply chain capability uplift programs and education and training efforts to bolster innovative approaches to skills delivery.
“The AUKUS pact provides an enormous opportunity for Australian defence manufacturers to create highly skilled jobs by supplying Australian submarines made in Australia. But it is also an opportunity to create new opportunities to supply Australian skills and technology into supply chains in the US and UK. To do that – we need to make sure we have enough skilled workers,” said Premier Malinauskas.
“HII has a strong track record of delivering long-term workforce development initiatives in the US, investing early to engage primary and high-school-aged children in STEM education. We are pleased to be partnering with the HII on this endeavour – applying their extensive experience to the enormous economic opportunity we have here in South Australia,” he added.
Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of HII, is one of only two shipyards capable of designing and building nuclear-powered submarines, including the US Navy’s most advanced attack submarines – the Virginia-class.
In a media release, the SA government said this will be an invaluable addition to the state’s shipbuilding capability as it commences the construction of Australia’s fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, SSN-AUKUS, which will be built at the Osborne Naval Shipyard in Adelaide.
“Establishing a robust, reliable and efficient Australian manufacturing supply chain for nuclear submarine sustainment and construction is strategically critical to HII’s success in achieving the goals of AUKUS Pillar 1,” said Eric Chewning, HII’s executive vice president for strategy and development.
“HII has partnership with small, medium and large companies in the United States, supporting the construction of conventionally armed and nuclear-powered submarines. We are pleased to initiate the process of replicating these partnerships in Australia,” Chewning said.
