Australian export shipbuilder Austal has called on the states to put regional rivalries aside and acknowledge work on the federal governments' new $39 billion Navy warship program will be spread across shipyards nationally.

In an interview with the Australian Financial Review, chief executive of the ASX listed Western Australian headquartered company, Andrew Bellamy said the plan unveiled by Prime Minister Tony Abbott on Tuesday was a "shot in the arm for the shipbuilding industry nationally".