Australia to buy three Virginia class N-submarines, then build 8 in Adelaide

Australia is to purchase three US-made Virginia class nuclear powered submarines and follow on by building eight nuclear powered submarines to a new design designated SSN-AUKUS in Adelaide. To fill a capability gap with the retirement of the Collins class submarines Australia will host American nuclear-powered submarines on a regular basis as early as 2027.…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – report card on our capability sectors

Yesterday in our series – Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – Lance Worrall argued that sovereign capability is about a nation making things it needs, and policy with purpose. Today he identifies Australia’s priority sovereign capability sectors, and reveals where we are falling short. Over 30 years Australia overdosed on neoliberalism. The patient’s disorders include deindustrialisation…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – how Covid created opportunity for Key Tubing and Electrical

It is said that necessity is the mother of invention. Just as this drove manufacturers to new heights during during the Covid-19 pandemic, the same urgency is needed today as the nation rebuilds sovereign capabilities. Today our editorial series – Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – looks at the fortunes, and future, of one manufacturing SME.…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – sovereign capability and how to get it

In the first of two articles in our new series – Celebrating Australian Sovereign Capability – Lance Worrall argues that sovereign capability depends on Australia’s reindustrialisation and rediscovering the positive role of government in setting directions for inclusive growth. The phrase ‘sovereign capability’ re-entered our lexicon during the pandemic. Covid severely disrupted international supply chains,…

Celebrating Australian sovereign capability – introduction to our new editorial series

We have all heard the phrase – sovereign manufacturing capabilities. But what does it mean for Australia in the 21st century, what are they and how do we develop them? Here Peter Roberts sets the scene for our latest editorial series – Celebrating Australian sovereign capability. It wasn’t too long ago that a new phrase…

Diverseco to offer NT manufacturers automation services

Robotics and automation company Diverseco will offer Northern Territory businesses direct access to automation services and solutions, including industrial robots, collaborative robots (known as “cobots”) and weighing solutions. The company has opened a Darwin premises on Cavenagh Street which will enable upskilling, job creation and support early-stage small-scale and pilot research projects in advanced manufacturing…

Warship alliance secures contract extension

The federal government has awarded a contract extension to the Warship Asset Management Agreement (WAMA) partners who are upgrading the Royal Australian Navy’s Anzac class frigates. The WAMA is an alliance of BAE Systems Australia, Saab Australia, Naval Ship Management and the Commonwealth Government and sustains hundreds of skilled shipbuilding jobs at Henderson in Western…

Hazer Group confirms 2023 hydrogen plant start-up

Technology development company the Hazer Group has confirmed the second half of 2023 for the start-up of a commercial demonstration plant under construction in Western Australia to demonstrate the Hazer process for producing hydrogen from biomass. The plant, supported by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA), has achieved gas flow and steady state operation. The…