Australia’s AUKUS Submarine Industry Strategy

Australia’s AUKUS Submarine Industry Strategy outlines the ambitious plan to uplift Australia’s military and industrial capability, under the timeframes of the Optimal Pathway announced in March 2023. The Industry Strategy identifies the conditions to develop the sovereign industrial capability needed to deliver, operate and sustain our future conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines, while also ensuring our existing Collins class submarines are sustained and upgraded until their eventual withdrawal from service. 

The Strategy will work in conjunction with related Defence strategy and planning documents, including the Defence Industry Development Strategy(Opens in a new tab/window) and the Naval Shipbuilding and Sustainment Plan(Opens in a new tab/window).

This uplift of submarine industrial capability is a critical part of the Government’s commitment to continuous naval shipbuilding, and will transform Australia’s two principal shipyards at Osborne, South Australia and Henderson in Western Australia, creating unprecedented commercial and career opportunities in industry.

This Strategy has been developed in consultation with stakeholders across Commonwealth and State Governments, defence industry, unions and academia, and will continue to evolve as our industry develops and the nuclear-powered submarine program progresses.

The Strategy sets out five critical lines of effort to boost Australian industry uplift:

• Creating demand clarity and signals for industry;
• Boosting investment attractiveness in critical areas;
• Simplifying regulation;
• Growing the skilled workforce; and
• Integrating Australian industry into US and UK supply chains.

Intent of the Strategy

1. Guide the development of an Australian Submarine Industrial Base capable of building and sustaining a persistent, potent and sovereign multi-class submarine capability in support of Australia’s National Defence (Chapter 1)
2. Prioritise work using a framework to define target states for Australian industrial capability, capacity and resilience (Chapter 2)
3. Highlight the significant opportunities for the Australian Submarine Industrial Base, giving Australian suppliers the confidence to invest in uplift and create long-term, stable job opportunities (Chapter 2)
4. Acknowledge hurdles to be overcome, and lay out effective, targeted and scalable investment and measures across five lines of effort (Chapters 3 and 4)
5. Provide a foundation for future work and continuous refinement, in light of industry progress and program requirements (Chapter 6)