Collins-class subs listed as ‘project of concern’
The Australian
By Ben Packham
13 December 2024
Collins-class submarine HMAS Dechaineux undergoes maintenance at South Australia’s Osborne yards. Picture: Emma Brasier
The navy’s ageing Collins-class submarines have been listed by Defence as a “project of concern” amid long-running maintenance problems that reduced the fleet to just a single operational boat in recent months.
The move will trigger closer ministerial oversight of Collins’ sustainment as Defence prepares to activate a high-risk $5bn plan to extend the ageing boats’ lives by another decade.
The Australian revealed in November that five of the six Collins subs were out of action as corrosion, delays and industrial action blew out sustainment schedules.
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy announced the remedial action on Friday, saying Defence would develop an improvement plan by early next year.
“By listing Collins-class sustainment as a product of concern, the government is demonstrating its commitment to remediating these challenges and ensuring the submarine enterprise, which includes Defence and ASC Pty Ltd, delivers and sustains improved performance,” he said.
Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy in front of a prototype of the Ghost Shark autonomous submarine. Picture: NewsWire / Nikki Short
The Australian revealed the Collins submarines, which are approaching the end of their original 30-year lifespans, are now being used more lightly when they are available under a deliberate strategy to avoid unnecessary wear and tear.
The state of the submarines has raised serious questions over the Defence’s ability to undertake life-of-type extension upgrades to all six of the boats, as planned, to bridge a potential capability gap before Australia’s nuclear submarines arrive.
Mr Conroy blamed the former government for the situation, pointing to a $120m cut to the Collins’ sustainment budget under the Coalition.
“This is another example of the Albanese government bringing the necessary energy and oversight to fix troubled projects,” he said.
Opposition defence spokesman Andrew Hastie said it was farcical of the government to try to blame the Coalition for its own “ineptitude and indecision” over nearly a full term in office.
“The Albanese government’s obsessive focus on its predecessors shows they seem only able to gaze at the rear view mirror, when they should face forward and lead,” he said.
“Meanwhile, the Valdez report looking into the life-of-type extension of the Collins class submarine fleet remains sitting on minister Conroy’s desk more than one year after he announced the independent assurance activity review.”
Former naval officer and UNSW adjunct fellow Jen Parker said the sustainment issues were exacerbated by the boats’ age and the way they had been used.
“It’s the distances that they travel for us and the amount we use them, because submarines are so critical to our maritime operations,” she said. “And then you factor in the age as well. I mean, of course, they’re going to be in a bad position.”
Ms Parker warned the difficulties in keeping sufficient boats in the water would make it harder to expand the submarine workforce for the navy to be ready to operate nuclear-powered submarines.
The service currently has about 800 qualified submariners but the nation’s future nuclear navy will require about 3000.
“We need to focus on eking out as many operational days out of these submarines as possible to grow the workforce and the experience of our submariners,” she said.
Chief of navy Mark Hammond last month defended the Collins subs, saying they remained “world class diesel boats” that were “meeting the operational requirements of the Australian government”.
Collins-class submarine sustainment was previously listed as a product of concern from November 2008 until October 2017.