Austal and Birdon have announced the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to jointly develop defence shipbuilding capability in Western Australia for delivery of the Australian Department of Defence Landing Craft-Medium (LC-M) Project.
The formation of the MoU commenced in late November when Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy announced a Heads of Agreement to establish a Strategic Shipbuilding Agreement between Austal and the Commonwealth and named Austal as the preferred vessel constructor. Birdon was selected by the Commonwealth as the preferred designer for the LC-M Project.
“We are pleased that our LC-M design, which exceeds requirements and will deliver beyond any other vessel currently in-service or advertised globally, was the design preferred by the Commonwealth. We look forward to teaming with Austal to bring the design to life,” said Jamie Bruce, Birdon CEO.
Under the MoU Austal and Birdon have agreed to work together to develop a costed proposal for the LC-M Project, along with exploring other potential Defence shipbuilding opportunities.
“Austal has a very good track record of working effectively with third-party vessel designers and we look forward to working with Birdon to develop the MoU into a more substantive partnership so that we can deliver a capable and cost-effective LC-M program for the Army,” said Paddy Gregg, Austal CEO.