Premier Steven Marshall says he is “100 per cent” confident thousands of shipbuilding jobs are locked in

Premier Steven Marshall says he is “100 per cent” confident thousands of jobs are locked in for SA under the national shipbuilding plan.

• No minimum requirement for SA jobs on future submarine program
• Report identifies challenges to creating 15,000 SA shipbuilding jobs

Premier Steven Marshall says he is “100 per cent” confident thousands of jobs are locked in for SA under the national shipbuilding plan.

But it remains unclear precisely how many jobs will be created locally.

As the state’s jobless rate soared to 6.3 per cent last month, its highest in 18 months, Mr Marshall said the projects were an enormous opportunity.

His reassurance follows a Senate Estimates defence hearing this week that revealed the $50 billion submarine build agreement did not include a minimum work guarantee for Australians.

“Of course, there are things that we have got to do to put ourselves in the best position to maximise the benefits of these contracts to our state,” Mr Marshall said.

Premier Steven Marshall and Minister for Defence Christopher Pyne.

“The No. 1 thing is making sure that we have got the right skilled workforce to deliver. “We are putting a massive investment in.

“ If we get the skills right in SA, then we will be able to deliver a massive dividend to our state. Not for two, five or 10 years, but for decades.”

The State Budget last year confirmed funding for an election commitment to deliver 20,000 extra training places in SA over the coming four years.

Defence Minister Christopher Pyne on Wednesday told The Advertiser that regionally superior subs built at Osborne would generate “an annual average of 2800 jobs”.

But his office yesterday would not confirm how many of those jobs would be in SA.

SA Opposition leader Peter Malinauskas said the agreement with French company Naval Group should have included either a percentage of Australian work, or a minimum standard.

But Mr Pyne has maintained the contract was never going to have a minimum percentage because it would remove the pressure on business to offer their best price.

A local build meant 60 per cent of the work would be done in Australia, he said.

The state’s unemployment rate rose 6.3 per cent, up from 5.9 per cent in December, seasonally adjusted figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics show.

It is the highest rate since June 2017 when the jobless rate reached 6.6 per cent.

It comes as the national rate remained at five per cent, down from 5.1 per cent, with the creation of more than 39,100 jobs.

The latest figures maintain SA’s position as the third highest rate, behind Western Australia at 6.8 per cent, and Tasmania at 7 per cent.