Britain has awarded BAE Systems a $4.9 billion (£4 billion) contract to build attack submarines as part of the AUKUS (Australia, United Kingdom, United States) program with Australia and the United States.
As part of the AUKUS plan announced in March, Australia will receive nuclear-powered attack submarines from the United States and Britain beginning in the early 2030s. These submarines will be employed to counter China’s ambitions in the Indo-Pacific region.
The defense ministry has provided funding for the company’s development work through 2028, allowing it to start working on the submarines’ detailed designs, according to a statement from BAE Systems.
“This multibillion-pound investment in the AUKUS submarine program will help provide the UK with the long-term hunter-killer submarine capabilities it requires,” said British Defense Minister Grant Shapps in a statement.
According to BAE Systems, the contract will support 5,000 jobs and be used to fund infrastructure improvements at the company’s Barrow-in-Furness location in northwest England.
BAE Systems has announced that production of the submarines will begin later this decade, with the first SSN-AUKUS submarine arriving in the late 2030s.