I wasn’t a big fan of French Barracuda sub, mainly because it wouldn’t hit the water by about 2035. We were only going to build six.
I also had doubts about the capability of leadership to pull off such a big project.
I held my tongue because it was going to provide thousands of jobs for people across SA – and especially for workers in the north, south and west of Adelaide.
My clients come from these areas and many work in the defence and allied industries.
Australia’s new submarines based on US technology won’t get wet until the 2040s.
But not if the work goes offshore. We could see the new subs in action within the next ten years.
How many local jobs will be provided and what level of Australian technology will be used?
The Naval Group agreement said 60 per cent of the contract’s value would be done in Australia.
The new arrangement won’t involve as much local work because the nuclear-enriched reactors will arrive fully built.
American defence giant Lockheed Martin, which was to have built the combat systems for the French submarines, has already issued termination letters to its subcontractors.
There is bugger-all detail about the new arrangement and its impact on the shipbuilding workforce.