Austal Limited has announced the start of construction on its new steel shipbuilding facility in Mobile, Alabama.
Austal USA, the American arm of the West Australia based shipbuilder, hosted a ceremony at the company’s shipyard to mark the start of construction of the new facility, which is expected to be complete by April 2022.
The $100 million facility is being delivered with funding assistance from the United States Government to provide additional capability alongside the company’s existing aluminium construction operations at Mobile, Alabama.
Austal Chief Executive Officer Paddy Gregg said the new steel shipbuilding facility will provide the capability to meet increasing demand by the US Navy and US Coast Guard for steel vessels.
“Austal USA’s new steel shipbuilding facility puts us in a prime position to target numerous major steel shipbuilding programs included in the U.S. Navy’s shipbuilding plan,” Mr Gregg said.
“Today’s ground-breaking marks the start of construction of facilities that will enable Austal USA to build the next generation of the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guards’ ships.”
Speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony, Interim Austal USA President Rusty Murdaugh added: “As demand for the greater and larger Navy and Coast Guard fleets grows, Austal USA is investing to meet those changing requirements.
“We’re investing in our people, we’re investing in our processes and we’re investing in our facilities and capabilities.”
