HMAS Cairns upgrades ahead of Arafura class patrol boat delivery
Federal Labor has doubled down on an LNP plan to make HMAS Cairns capable of home porting Arafura class patrol boats before 2030 amid an increasing strategic importance of the region.
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Federal Labor has doubled down on an LNP plan to commit $240m to upgrade HMAS Cairns and make the base capable of home porting a fleet of Arafura class patrol boats before 2030.
The Cairns-specific investment announced on Thursday is part a $3.8b federal spend recently recommended by the Defence Strategic Review.
The spend adds to a $155m allocation for the same purpose announced by former Prime Minister Scott Morrison in 2021.
In Cairns on Thursday to announce the funding over four years, Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said the upgrades to HMAS Cairns would be vital to national security in the event of possible future conflicts and would dovetail with existing contracts, such as a $70m navy maintenance contract awarded to Norsta Maritime in 2022.
The Minister described the Defence Strategic Review as the “most significant” defence planning document to be released in 40 years.
“One of the key announcements out of the DSR and the government’s response is about the urgent need to harden the north and to invest in infrastructure,” Mr Conroy said
“We need to invest in better facilities to house the (Arafura class Offshore Patrol Vessels) and also strengthen the HMAS Cairns in terms of hardening it up so that it can deal with potential future conflicts.
“Cairns provides a vital role, it is the home of HMAS Cairns, which is home to some really important naval vessels.”
A breakdown of the spend the Department of Defence stated from $240m a total of $15.6m would be used to update existing facilities at HMAS Cairns, $4.4m will help support modernisation of naval systems and computer networks, and $214.8m will deliver infrastructure for Arafura Offshore Patrol Vessels.
Advance Cairns chief executive officer Jacinta Reddan, while welcoming the investment, stated funding for HMAS Cairns upgrades had been announced by the previous government.
“While new funds have been directed to the Air Force base at Scherger under this review, it appears no additional funds have been directed to HMAS Cairns,” she said.
“We are pleased to see Cairns’ role in the hardening of Australia’s northern defences highlighted (on Thursday) but we are keen to learn more about how the funds will be spent.”
Cairns-based Senator Nita Green said the investment came at a crucial time as the Department of Defence looked toward the Pacific amid increasing geopolitical tension in the area.
“I know that we’ll see lots of local jobs as a result of construction and we know that will flow over the next four years,” she said.
“We’ve got a really big pipeline of infrastructure going into Cairns at the moment.”
The new funding follows a joint federal and state spend worth $300m for the Cairns Marine Precinct project including a common user facility at the Fearnley St public boat ramp.
Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch agreed the HMAS Cairns capability was needed as French and British activity in the Pacific increases but also insisted he announced similar funding in 2021.
“It’s is just so transparent, what it means is they have committed to do what we were going to do,” he said.
“I announced this funding a few years ago, there is all this money that has been set aside but not spent.”
While in Cairns the Minister also announced the awarding of a $46m contract to Brisbane firm L3Harris Micreo who will deliver 80 new explosive ordnance disposal robots, some of which will be deployed to navy vessels home ported in Cairns.
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Originally published as HMAS Cairns upgrades ahead of Arafura class patrol boat delivery
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