The government is set to announce its plan to build new warships in Australia, ending the "valley of death" and shoring up political support in South Australia.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott said Australia had built good ships in the past and could do so in the future.
He said the problem was that not a single naval shipbuilding order was placed with an Australian yard during six years under Labor and that meant the "valley of death" was upon us.
That's the period of years between the end of current projects to construct new air warfare destroyers and landing ships and the start of projects to construct future submarines and frigates.
In that time, shipbuilders have no choice but to lay off hundreds of skilled workers, as is now happening in Adelaide, Melbourne and Newcastle.
"I am confident that we can have a viable, sustainable long-term naval shipbuilding industry here in Australia centred in South Australia and we'll be making announcements in the next day or so," Mr Abbott told reporters in Adelaide.
Federal cabinet meets in Adelaide on Tuesday, with the shipbuilding plan likely to be considered.
This is a potent political issue in SA because of the government's backdown on its pre-election promise to build 12 new submarines in Adelaide where the Navy's six Collins subs were built. New subs could be constructed in Japan, Germany or France.
The government is treating construction of submarines and surface warships as separate issues.
Earlier this year, a report by the US think tank the Rand Corporation found Australia paid a 30-40 per cent premium for construction of warships, but that would fall with a rolling build program which turned out new warships every 18-24 months.
What's under consideration are replacements for the Navy's workhorse Anzac frigates that reach retirement from about 2025. Ten of these vessels were constructed in Melbourne between 1993 and 2004 - eight for Australia and two for New Zealand.
The Anzac ships program is regarded as highly successful with vessels delivered on time and on budget.
A program for continuous construction of Anzac replacements would likely see some of the Anzacs retired ahead of schedule. New vessels would remain in service for about 20 years rather than the current 30 years.
Mr Abbott said the new program would ensure there was never again a "valley of death".
Share
