Page 40 - Australian Defence Magazine June 2019

PROJECTS
MARITIME
Australia’s maritime programs at a glance
JULIAN KERR | SYDNEY
At a time of intense activity in Australia’s naval domain, planning for the design and construction of $85 billion worth of Future Submarines and Future Frigates is proceeding apace without any apparent alarums and excursions.
MEANWHILE work on the first of 12 Ara- fura-class Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) is progressing well, the third and final Air Warfare Destroyer is set to be delivered ahead of schedule, and the first Anzac frig- ate to complete the class’s extensive Mid-Life Capability Assurance Program (AMCAP) will rejoin the fleet by the end of the year.
Given the recent low-key disclosure that the workhorse Anzacs are to have their ser- vice life extended by up to a decade, that program has assumed even greater impor- tance. Additionally, a further life-of-type study now under way on the Armidale-class patrol boat fleet could see that capability ex- tended until the late 2020s.
Following 12 months of complex and sometimes heated negotiations, a Strate- gic Partnering Agreement (SPA) setting out the principles of cooperation between French shipbuilder Naval Group and the Commonwealth for the $50 billion future Attack-class submarine program was signed in Canberra in February.
The overarching SPA sets out terms and conditions that will endure for the entire Sea 1000 program, up to and including contracts for the build of the 12th and final boat.
Negotiations were drawn out by issues including the length of warranty periods to cover potential defects, and the implica- tions for the transfer of intellectual property
40 | June 2019 | www.australiandefence.com.au