AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine key Adelaide construction deal to be inked by Defence Minister Richard Marles

Australia’s $368bn nuclear-powered submarine project will be kickstarted with a key deals to be inked in Adelaide.

Australia’s $368bn nuclear-powered submarine project will be kickstarted with a key construction deal to be inked in Adelaide on Wednesday, despite uncertainty over the AUKUS pact’s future under Donald Trump’s administration.

Defence Minister Richard Marles will sign a tripartite agreement to start preparatory work at Osborne Naval Shipyard, including recruiting workers and developing build program schedules setting the foundations for the project.

Mr Marles, who will be Acting Prime Minister, is hailing the agreement as “another major milestone towards the construction” of nuclear-powered submarines in Adelaide.

The “collaborative mobilisation agreement” will be signed between the federal government, BAE Systems and government-owned ASC, formerly the Australian Submarine Corporation.

Another two training programs for almost 300 South Australians also will be announced, as part of moves to create the highly skilled workforce.

Defence Minister Richard Marles at Osborne Naval Shipyard in 2023. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Morgan Sette

ASC and Osborne Naval Shipyard neighbour BAE Systems Australia were in March named as the joint AUKUS submarine builders, with ASC the sole fleet maintainer.

“These mobilisation arrangements provide the foundation that will underpin a generational uplift in Australia’s industrial base for the construction of this critical capability,” Mr Marles said.

“Construction of Australia’s first SSN-AUKUS submarine will commence in Australia by the end of this decade and the work to deliver this capability is already well underway.

“This will be a whole-of-nation undertaking, one which will provide Australia with robust and resilient supply chains that enhance our national security.”

The mobilisation deal includes workforce recruitment, on-boarding and planning; starting build schedules and plans for the joint venture between BAE and ASC; along with procurement of equipment, components and other items for the submarines.

Another enterprise collaboration deed will set out arrangements for collaboration between the submarine builders and other AUKUS partners, such as nuclear propulsion system provider Rolls-Royce.

A render of the SSN-AUKUS nuclear-powered Submarine. Credit: BAE Systems

The two defence training programs will enable an extra 275 trainees and apprentices to learn while in full-time employment – run by Peer Education Employment and Training in partnership with TAFE SA.

A Defence Industry Pathways Program, which will expand to SA from Western Australia, is a 12-month traineeship in various fields to obtain a Certificate III qualification.

The Shipbuilding Employment Pathways pilot is a four-year-program to give apprentices fabrication, mechanical and electrical qualifications.

State Defence and Space Industries Minister Stephen Mullighan said the number of skilled SA defence workers was set to skyrocket, creating “thousands of highly-skilled, highly-paid career opportunities in the coming years and decades”.

BAE Systems Australia chief executive Craig Lockhart said the pathways program would boost existing schemes “to strengthen the pipeline of talent from schools into the workplace”.

“Finding thousands of Australians with the right skills to deliver the SSN AUKUS fleet sits high on the list of formidable challenges that lie ahead for the nation’s next generation submarine program,” he said.