Defence Minister Richard Marles and Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy, together with Senator Penny Wong and South Australia Premier Peter Malinauskas have confirmed that Osborne will become the home for Australia’s nuclear-powered submarine construction efforts.
In a joint media release, the officials said this historic announcement is a “unique opportunity” for South Australia, which will deliver jobs and benefit the economy for generations to come.
Officials also stated that the South Australian industry will see a significant increase in capability and capacity as it takes its place at the forefront of one of Australia’s largest manufacturing undertakings.
The initiative will see an estimated $2 billion investment in South Australia over the Forward Estimates, according to the announcement.
The officials then confirmed that the Submarine Construction Yard built for the next-generation nuclear-powered submarines will be nearly three times the size of the yard planned for the Attack class program.
When the program reaches its peak, an additional 4,000 to 5,500 direct shipyard jobs are anticipated to be produced, nearly doubling the workforce anticipated by the previous government for the Attack class program.
The additional jobs generated in the supply chain for the manufacture or maintenance of submarines are not included in the said figures, officials said.
In order to provide South Australia with this multigenerational opportunity, the Albanese Government said it will continue to collaborate with the South Australian Government through the Commonwealth South Australian Defence Industry Workforce and Skills Taskforce.
“South Australia has a critical contribution to Australia’s next-generation nuclear-powered submarine program by ensuring there is a world-class facility to build and deliver this transformational capability for our nation,” said Minister Marles.
Meanwhile, Minister Conroy claimed that this is the biggest industrial project Australia has ever undertaken, emphasising that “it will be revolutionary.”
“There will be thousands of direct jobs in constructing the shipyard and building the submarines, but also significant opportunities in the supply chains, not only of Australia, but of the United States and the United Kingdom,” Conroy noted.
Premier Malinauskas said the project means there will be more highly skilled, highly paid jobs across the nation’s economy that will help lift the standard of living for generations of South Australians.
