The National Reconstruction Fund Corporation (NRFC) is providing $245 million of debt to Austal Defence Shipbuilding Australia Pty Ltd (Austal Defence Australia (ADA)) to build an advanced manufacturing facility that will enable local production of Landing Craft Heavy (LCH) for the Australian Army at Western Australia’s Australian Marine Complex (AMC).

ADA is a subsidiary of Austal Limited (ASX: ASB), an Australia-based shipbuilder and Defence prime contractor that specialises in the design, construction and support of defence and commercial vessels. The Commonwealth of Australia (CoA) and ADA executed the Strategic Shipbuilding Agreement (SSA) in 2025, making ADA Defence’s Strategic Shipbuilder in Western Australia. 

Under the Agreement ADA has been contracted to manufacture eight Landing Craft Heavy (LCH) vessels by 2038. The LCH will be capable of transporting more than 500 tonnes of embarked personnel, vehicles and equipment by sea, including long-range precision strike weapons and other units. This will greatly enhance the Australian Defence Force’s littoral capability, and support humanitarian and disaster relief.

NRFC CEO David Gall said, “This investment by the NRFC will strengthen our existing naval shipbuilding capacity at a time when geopolitical shifts are making these vital capabilities increasingly important.”

“NRFC investment in LCH manufacturing builds industrial depth that can be re-deployed across future naval programs. It will help to embed vital sovereign naval assembly and quality assurance capabilities onshore, reducing our reliance on offshore shipyards and providing our allies with a strategically important capability as they undertake the large-scale fleet replacement needed to ensure maritime security.”

“Tectonic shifts in the geopolitical environment mean that the global naval shipbuilding market is projected to grow 25 per cent by 2033. As a global leader in shipbuilding, autonomous vessels and hydrogen‑ready maritime platforms, Austal Defence Australia is well placed to capitalise on this market trend.”

NRFC funding will be used to construct and fit out ADA’s AMC facilities with modular manufacturing capabilities to ensure delivery of the LCH project. 

Austal already employs around 1,200 people in Australia and NRFC investment in the LCH project is expected to create an additional 780 Western Australia based roles in skilled trades, engineering and advanced manufacturing. 

Austal CEO Paddy Gregg said, “This NRFC funding supports development of the facilities that are critical to delivering the Landing Craft Heavy program, with significant long-term benefits for both sovereign shipbuilding and local jobs in Western Australia.”

“In the spirit of the Strategic Shipbuilding Agreement between the Commonwealth and Austal Defence Australia, all parties are cooperating to drive the success of this critical build program.”

NRFC’s investment is subject to completion of finance documentation and satisfaction of conditions customary for a transaction of this nature.

[ENDS]

About the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation (NRFC)

The NRFC is Australia’s sovereign investor in manufacturing capability. It has $15 billion to invest through direct loans, equity investments and loan guarantees across eight priority areas: renewables and low emissions technologies; enabling capabilities; defence capability; transport; value-add in resources; value-add in agriculture, forestry and fisheries; medical science; and industrial manufacturing and critical supply chains.

The NRFC’s role is to invest in Australian businesses and projects that design, refine and make to transform capability, grow jobs and a skilled workforce, and diversify our economy. The NRFC is a corporate Commonwealth entity, established by the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation Act 2023 (NRFC Act) in September 2023.

For more information, visit nrf.gov.au.

NRFC media contact: media@nrf.gov.au

About Austal Limited 

Austal is Australia’s global shipbuilder and defence prime contractor designing, constructing and sustaining some of the world’s most advanced commercial and defence vessels. In November 2024 the Australian Commonwealth Government appointed Austal Defence Shipbuilding Australia Pty Ltd (Austal Defence Australia (ADA)), a subsidiary of Austal Limited, as its Strategic Shipbuilder for the construction of 
key Defence vessels in Western Australia. 

For almost 40 years Austal has contracted more than 360 vessels for over 122 commercial and defence operators in 59 countries.

Austal is Australia’s largest defence exporter and first ASX-listed shipbuilder. Austal has industry-leading shipyards in Australia, the United States of America, the Philippines and Vietnam with service centres worldwide. 

Austal manufactures and delivers large, complex vessels to the United States Department of Defense, United States Coast Guard, Australian Department of Defence and Australian Department of Home Affairs and other defence and border force agencies around the world.

Having designed, manufactured and delivered iconic monohull, catamaran and trimaran commercial vessel platforms – including the world’s largest trimaran ferry and multiple defence programs such as the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) and Expeditionary Fast Transport (EPF) for the United States Navy, Austal’s capability has expanded to include the delivery of Offshore Patrol Cutters for the United States Coast Guard, nuclear submarine modules for US Virginia and Columbia class submarines, auxiliary vessels for the United States Navy and landing craft and patrol boats for the Australian Department of Defence.

For more visit austal.com(Opens in a new tab/window).

Austal media contact: cameron.morse@fticonsulting.com