US plans to spend $400m on Top End military facilities

THE United States military plans to spend more than $400 million on navy and air force facilities in the Northern Territory

US Marines disembark at RAAF Base Darwin to join the 2019 Marine Rotational Force. The US military has big plans for the Top End.

THE United States military plans to spend more than $400 million on navy and air force facilities in the Northern Territory.

A defence bill tabled in the US Senate last month outlines that $US 211.5 million ($AUD 306 million) has been allocated for navy construction projects in Darwin.

The bill also shows $US 70.6 million ($AUD 102.1 million) earmarked for air force military construction at RAAF Base Tindal, located near Katherine.

A US Congressional bill called the National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2020 shows $US 211.5 million has been allocated for navy construction in Darwin.

While the bill offers few details on what projects the NT funds are intended for, it did outline that $50,000 had been allocated to build an aircraft parking tarmac in Darwin, along with $59,000 for bulk storage tanks and $11,600 for earth covered magazines at Tindal.

Minister for Defence Linda Reynolds told the NT News the funding had not yet been approved by US Congress.

“Australia and the United States are investing approximately $2 billion in infrastructure projects in Northern Australia to support the implementation and future operations of the US Force Posture Initiatives (USFPI),” she said.

“The USFPI projects will provide facilities that will support the Marine Rotation Force-Darwin (MRF-D) and Enhanced Air Cooperation (EAC) requirements.

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These infrastructure projects include but are not limited to airfields, accommodation, training areas and ranges.

“The $US 211.5 million in the draft Congress Bill is identified against an agreed works plan under the USFPI.”

NT Chief Minister Michael Gunner said he had not been briefed about what the funding was for during a press conference today.

“I know the US government is spending about $1 billion in the NT for this Forces Posture Initiative,” he said.

“Those existing American government investments are going into established facilities already here in the NT.

“All the money for those investments, even if they are for the air force, has come out of the US Navy‘s bucket.

“So this $300 million that they are appropriating now may be a part of that pipeline already or it maybe for new additional works — we haven’t been briefed on that.”

Mr Gunner said the US Secretary of Navy has showed interest in the NT ship lift project.

“The very last time he was here in Darwin we briefed him on the ship lift facility and he was very interested in that for the repair, service and maintenance aspect of vessels,” he said.

“At the moment the US Navy has got limited options for repair throughout the region, with Japan and Guam, so a ship lift here would be very handy.”

NT Chamber of Commerce CEO Greg Bicknell said he was worried the economic impact of building the ship lift for local business would take a hit if the US Navy got involved.

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“The ship lift will be of interest to the US Navy however there are restrictions under the Jones Act, which require US contractors to complete any works on military vessels,” he said.

“This means that while the ship lift may be used for US vessels on occasion, the economic impact for local business will be indirect.”

Last month Defence and Mr Gunner rejected claims a top secret naval port is in the works at Glyde Point, north of Darwin, which could eventually help US Marines operate more readily in the Indo-Pacific.

The construction of a port facility at Glyde Point has been floated by various governments over recent decades but Mr Gunner said the project was still some way off.

Darwin achieved a major milestone last week with the arrival of additional US Marines, reaching 2500 for the first time to join the 2019 Marine Rotational Force.