Defence contractor and ship builder Austal has signed a $305 million dollar contract to build and maintain 21 new patrol boats for the Australian government.
Austal will start designing the vessels with an initial 19 planned for construction in 2017 and an option for two more included in the contract.
The signing marked the formalisation of the contract it won in April as part of the $40 billion naval-shipbuilding program unveiled by the federal government.
The first boats are expected to hit the water in 2018.
The steel-hulled boats will be built in WA and maintained in Cairns by local contractors which promises ongoing local employment, Austal chief executive David Singleton said.
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"Importantly, by expanding into steel we will further enhance the shipyard as we position Austal to bid and win additional domestic defence shipbuilding contracts," Mr Singleton said.
The boats will be deployed in the South Pacific protecting against illegal fishing, trans-national crime and search and rescue.
