Power up the fleet
AUSTRALIA will undergo a decades-long industrial revolution as it spends up to $368bn on a nuclear-powered submarine fleet, with the first homemade vessels to hit the water in the 2040s.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese joined US President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in San Diego on Tuesday for the historic announcement, slated to create more than 20,000 jobs in Australia over three decades.
Beijing quickly condemned the AUKUS deal, claiming it “hurts peace and stability” in the Indo-Pacific, and accused Australia of breaching its nuclear nonproliferation obligations.
But China’s rapid militarisation and increased belligerence in the region was a key motivator in the US and UK deciding to share their nuclear propulsion technology with Australia.
The entire scheme is expected to cost between $268bn and $368bn – the equivalent of 0.15 per cent of Australia’s gross domestic product averaged over the life of the program.
A new nuclear-powered submarine – dubbed SSNAUKUS – will be built in South Australia, with the first boat expected to hit the water from the early 2040s and every three years after that.
The SSN-AUKUS will be based on a British design and loaded with technology from all three countries.
To bridge the capability gap before these new submarines are built, Australia will buy at least three US Virginia Class nuclear-powered boats from the 2030s.
As early as this year, the US will increase visits from its own Virginia vessels, and from 2027 up to four of its submarines and one UK boat will rotate through HMAS Stirling near Perth.
The Federal Government also will continue with plans to extend the life of Australia’s six Collins Class diesel electric submarines another decade, pushing their retirement to the late 2030s.
It is expected the program will cost $50bn-$58bn over the next decade.
Mr Albanese hailed the SSN-AUKUS as “an Australian sovereign capability – built by Australians, commanded by the Royal Australian Navy and sustained by Australians in Australian shipyards”.
He said the transformation of Australia’s industrial base required to build nuclearpowered submarines was on par with the creation of the nation’s automotive industry after World War II.
Mr Biden said he was determined to help Australia develop its nuclear submarine capability as quickly as possible.
“The ultimate goal isn’t just selling subs to Australia – it’s developing something new together,” he said.
The AUKUS submarine plan is expected to create 20,000 direct jobs in Australia over the next 30 years, including 8500 shipbuilding roles in SA.
Condemning the deal, the Chinese Mission to the UN tweeted: “The nuclear submarine co-operation plan … fuels arms races and hurts peace and stability in the region”.
Defence Minister and Corio MP Richard Marles gave French Defence Minister Sébastien Lecornu an outline of the AUKUS plan almost a week ago.