BAE Systems Secures AUKUS Nuclear Submarine Contract

By IndraStra Global News Team

Cover Image Attribute: Artist rendering of possible design for SSN-AUKUS submarines / Source: Wikimedia Commons

BAE Systems, a British defense contractor, has been designated to construct the nuclear-powered submarines for Australia under the AUKUS trilateral security pact, as the consortium declared on Friday. Construction is anticipated to commence in the latter part of the 2020s, following the completion of new shipbuilding facilities valued at a minimum of A$2 billion.
The AUKUS agreement, inked in 2021 by Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, entails the development of conventionally-armed nuclear submarines for Australia amidst the backdrop of competition between Washington and Beijing for dominance in the strategically crucial Indo-Pacific region.
According to an announcement from AUKUS, BAE Systems will collaborate with the Australian government shipbuilder ASC to manufacture the SSN-AUKUS submarines for the Australian Navy. Furthermore, ASC has been appointed by the three partners to undertake the maintenance of these submarines, which are modeled on the cutting-edge British next-generation design and incorporate advanced US technologies.
However, specifics regarding the number of submarines involved in the project were kept a secret, but it is being assumed to be between five and six submarines, to be manufactured at the Osborne Naval Shipyard in South Australia. A new submarine construction facility, named the Submarine Construction Yard, will be erected at Osborne for this purpose. The commencement of construction for the first submarine is slated for the late 2030s, with delivery expected in the early 2040s. Subsequently, a new submarine will be constructed every three years.
"SSN-AUKUS will be equipped for intelligence, surveillance, undersea warfare, and strike missions, and will provide maximum interoperability among AUKUS partners," stated British Defense Secretary Grant Shapps, alongside his American counterpart Lloyd J. Austin and Australian counterpart Richard Marles.
This declaration coincides with Shapps' visit to Australia, where he participated in the annual ministerial consultations between Australia and the United Kingdom (AUKMIN) in Adelaide, alongside UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron, as well as Richard Marles and Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong. 

Image Attribute: Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong with UK Foreign Secretary David Cameron in Osborne Naval Shipyard, Adelaide on 22 March 2024 / Source: Michael Errey/AFP/Getty Images
To help ease the pressure, Australia will provide Britain with 2.4 billion pounds ($3.1 billion) to support the conventionally armed SSN-AUKUS submarines' design process and expand the Rolls Royce Raynesway facility in Derby dedicated to manufacturing nuclear reactors for submarines.
Additionally, Australia has committed to investing $3 billion in U.S. shipyards, which manufacture the Virginia-class nuclear submarines that Australia plans to acquire early in the next decade. This investment addresses concerns about potential delays due to an existing backlog of orders that could jeopardize the agreement.
Furthermore, Australia will allocate A$1.5 billion ($993 million) to prepare a naval base in Western Australia for nuclear submarines, particularly to accommodate a U.S. and British naval presence scheduled to rotate through the base each year starting in 2027. The overall cost of these initiatives is estimated to be around A$8 billion.

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