USN awards $1.7 billion Portsmouth Naval Shipyard expansion contract
USS Virginia successfully exits dry dock at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. (Photo: USN.)
Works will improve the Maine shipyard’s ability to support USN attack submarines.
US Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command (NAVFAC), on 13 August, awarded a $1.7 billion contract for the expansion and reconfiguring of a dry-dock complex at Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.
The works will increase the shipyard’s capacity to maintain, modernise and repair US attack submarines.
The seven-year project, part of the USN’s broader Shipyard Infrastructure Optimisation Program (SIOP), will see Nebraska-based 381 Constructors build an ‘addition to Dry Dock 1’, new concrete floors, pump systems, caissons and other mechanical and electrical systems.
Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Commander VADM William Galinis said: ‘Our naval shipyards need these major modernisation efforts to sustain our ability to maintain our nuclear submarine fleet.
‘The navy needs combat-ready ships and submarines to go where they’re needed, when they’re needed, and these major upgrades and reconfigurations at our naval shipyards will enable the fleet to meet its future missions.’
An initial $70 million of funding has already been allocated, with the rest to be incrementally released.
SIOP is a joint NAVSEA, NAVFAC and Commander, Navy Installations Command effort to modernise infrastructure at the USN’s four public shipyards: Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility, and Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility.
You may also like
More from Naval Warfare
-
![US Navy’s $275 billion BBGN plan hinges on shipyard transformation]()
US Navy’s $275 billion BBGN plan hinges on shipyard transformation
The US Navy’s planned nuclear-powered warship carries a US$275 billion price tag, but the greater story lies in the industrial overhaul needed to build it, from AI-enabled design to digital twins and modular construction.
-
![Industry sees opportunity in Australia’s shift to networked undersea warfare]()
Industry sees opportunity in Australia’s shift to networked undersea warfare
Australia’s new defence innovation strategy indicates a shift from platform-centric to network-centric undersea warfare, with Ocius and Anduril Industries pointing to fast-growing opportunities for local industry.
-
![Asia-Pacific emerges as the largest export market for US-made USVs]()
Asia-Pacific emerges as the largest export market for US-made USVs
Asian customers have placed one of the largest known international purchases of US-built uncrewed surface vessels, highlighting accelerating regional demand for autonomous maritime capabilities and distributed naval operations.
-
![RTX confirms US Marine Corps and US Navy acquire Hadalus UUV]()
RTX confirms US Marine Corps and US Navy acquire Hadalus UUV
RTX told Shephard that the Hadalus UUV has been procured by the US Marine Corps and the Office of Naval Research for operational experimentation as the company prepares additional demonstrations with the US Navy, NATO and AUKUS partners.
-
![The UK joins the movement towards joint procurement]()
The UK joins the movement towards joint procurement
The UK will spend an estimated US$3.89 billion over the next decade in joint naval programmes, a lot of which will be in cooperation with Norway.
