Electric Boat Corp., a subsidiary of General Dynamics, was awarded a not-to-exceed $101,295,930 contract modification for the manufacturing of 22 tactical missile tubes in support of the Ohio-class replacement.
More specifically, Electric Boat is to deliver tactical missile tubes to support the manufacture of the common missile compartment for the Ohio Replacement Program. Work will be performed in Quonset Point, Rhode Island, and is expected to be completed by December 2024.
The U.S. Navy’s Ohio Replacement program will, as its name suggests, replace the current Ohio class which is expected to have its first vessel retire by 2029. Twelve boats are planned as replacement for the Ohio class.
The new sub was initially expected cost over $4 billion per unit compared to Ohio’s $2 billion but media reports claim that more recent projections place the tag at around $6 to $8 billion. The new class of U.S. Navy ballistic missile submarine is to be named Columbia, as the first boat in the class will be named.
According to General Dynamics, the Ohio replacement program is scheduled to begin production in 2021. A total of 241 missile tubes will be manufactured over the course of the program, including missiles for the U.K. Successor submarine.
The latest contract also includes United Kingdom Foreign Military Sales incremental funding in the amount of $2,281,400.