Supporting Australian Industry to Join UK Submarine Supply Chains

14 April 2026

(Image credit: BAE Systems)

The Albanese Government continues to expand opportunities for Australian businesses in support of AUKUS—helping to secure high-value manufacturing contracts that support Australian jobs and develop robust, resilient supply chains.

The Government has announced the development and extension of two significant programs to help local industry tap into the supply chains of AUKUS partners:

The Australian Submarine Supplier Qualification program (AUSSQ) has been expanded, linking businesses in Australia to the United Kingdom’s submarine supply chains for the first time, as well as building on the success of the pilot in growing access to supply chains in the United States.
ASC and BAE Systems have launched a new supply chain qualification program, giving the Australian industry the opportunity to contribute to the SSN-AUKUS build program across both Australia and the UK.

Australian Submarine Supplier Qualification Program

Less than a year after the launch of the Australian Submarine Supplier Qualification Program (AUSSQ), the Albanese Government is investing an additional $21 million to significantly expand this program.

$6.9 million will go towards supporting Australian suppliers to provide priority sustainment services to the UK submarines participating in the Submarine Rotational Force—West activities at HMAS Stirling, in Western Australia.

This work will validate and qualify Australian businesses against 20 service types identified by Babcock International Group as being in high demand across the Astute class submarine supply chain, and give the local industry a direct link to UK sustainment requirements.

A further $14 million is also being invested to expand the existing AUSSQ program, which is qualifying Australian companies to join the Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) Newport News Shipbuilding supply chain in the US. This next tranche will see businesses with expertise in composites, glass-reinforced plastics, furniture, and joinery, able to compete for opportunities in the US nuclear-powered submarine and aircraft carrier supply chains.

Today’s announcement builds on the success of the program, which to date has seen 13 companies achieve supplier qualifications and takes the Albanese Government’s total investment in AUSSQ to nearly $40 million dollars.

AUSSQ is delivered by HII Australia through H&B Defense, a joint venture between HII and Babcock.

ASC-BAE Systems Supply Chain Qualification Program

A new supply chain qualification program, led by Australia’s Sovereign Submarine Partners ASC and BAE Systems, will give Australian industry the opportunity to contribute expertise and capabilities to the supply chains for both the Australian and UK nuclear-powered submarines (SSN-AUKUS) build programs.

To support this, ASC and BAE will initially seek expressions of interest from Australian suppliers able to produce a range of metal fabrications, from small to large structural fabrications. This opportunity will be open to current defense suppliers and companies seeking to enter the defense industry supply chain.

Australia’s SSN-AUKUS will be a trilaterally-developed submarine based on the UK’s next-generation design that incorporates technology from all three nations, including cutting-edge US submarine technologies.

With construction on Australia’s first SSN‑AUKUS submarine in Osborne by the end of this decade on track, around 5,500 jobs will be created to support this in South Australia.

Expressions of interest for this program are now open via the SSN-AUKUS Build Program Industry Capability Network Portal.

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles, said: “AUKUS is one of the greatest industrial endeavors in our nation’s history—supporting advanced manufacturing, creating high-value jobs, and strengthening Australia’s security, and the Albanese Government is committed to seeing Australian businesses at its forefront.

“Expanding the AUSSQ program to support the sustainment of the United Kingdom’s Astute class submarines is another important step in strengthening the industrial partnerships at the heart of AUKUS.

“I also welcome the qualification program from our Sovereign Submarine Partners, which adds yet another pathway for industry right across the nation to enter the supply chains of not just Australia’s nuclear-powered submarine program, but of our AUKUS partners as well.

“Together, these programs will make an enormous contribution to Australian businesses and jobs in support of our national defense.”

Minister for Defense Industry Pat Conroy, said: “The AUSSQ program is already demonstrating the quality contribution that Australian companies can make to AUKUS supply chains, supporting export opportunities and Australian jobs.

“Australian industry support to US and UK maintenance activities not only helps keep their submarines at sea, it also strengthens Australia’s industrial capability to support Australia’s future fleet of conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines.”