Shipbuilder and defense contractor BAE Systems on Thursday announced it has officially submitted its bid for the construction of Australia’s nine SEA 5000 Future Frigates.
The company, however, did not reveal the cost of designing and building the frigates in Australia.
What is known is that the frigate design will be based on the Type 26 global combat ship which already started construction in the UK.
The UK defense ministry expects to build its eight Type 26 ship for around £12b (approx. $15.6b).
The campaign is being led by BAE Systems’ global maritime business development director, Nigel Stewart, and the bid was put together by a joint UK and Australian team “to ensure the learning and knowledge from the Type 26 program is fully complemented by the maritime skills and expertise of BAE Systems’ team in Australia.”
“BAE Systems is proud to have submitted its response to the Australian Government for the SEA 5000 program,” Nigel Stewart. “By combining the formidable capability of our Type 26 anti-submarine warfare frigate with the heritage and skills we have in Australia, we are sure we can offer a proposition to the Government that is both transformational and compelling. Our commitment is to establish a world class ship building capability in Australia that will build Australian ships with an Australian work force.”