Sikorsky locks in $313.5m contract to maintain Navy Romeo helicopters
Sikorsky Australia, has been awarded a new three-year contract worth AU$313.5 million to continue its long-standing maintenance an...
Top takeaways: Palmer Luckey discusses rebuilding US defence industry, weaponising visas and expansionist China
American entrepreneur Palmer Luckey has shared his thoughts on how the United States can best rebuild its defence industry and con...
Closing the loop: Chinese warships could circumnavigate Australia in naval power flex
A possible circumnavigation of Australia is on the cards as the Chinese Navy taskforce heads west in their latest show of maritime...
End of Operation Okra: Australian flag comes down in Kuwait
The Australian flag descended at Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve in Kuwait for the final time in Dece...

Austal to offload joint venture with Chinese firm

Austal to offload joint venture with Chinese firm

The ASX-listed prime has unveiled plans to sell its stake in a joint venture with a Chinese shipbuilding company, in a bid to redirect resources to its defence and commercial operations in the US and south-east Asia.

The ASX-listed prime has unveiled plans to sell its stake in a joint venture with a Chinese shipbuilding company, in a bid to redirect resources to its defence and commercial operations in the US and south-east Asia.

In a note to shareholders, Austal has confirmed it has commenced negotiations with Guangdong Jianglong Shipbuilding Company (Jianglong Shipbuilding) to sell its 40 per cent stake in Aulong Shipbuilding — a joint venture between the two companies, established in June 2016.

Aulong was originally established to enhance commercial passenger and non-military vessel opportunities in mainland China, with Austal since licensing a number of its commercial aluminium vessel designs for marketing and construction at Jianglong Shipbuilding’s facilities in Guangdong province.

Jianglong Shipbuilding has supported the venture with its workforce of 1,000 employees across two shipyards.

However, according to an Austal spokesperson, the domestic ferry business “hasn’t grown like the company had envisaged five years ago”.

As such, the Western Australia-based firm has decided to redirect its resources elsewhere.

“Austal’s focus is moving into steel shipbuilding in the US and growing our defence and commercial business in south-east Asia, so we can’t give the Aulong JV the attention and capital it needs to grow,” the spokesperson added.

Austal aims to divest from the joint venture by 31 October 2021.

[Related: Thales, Austal sign shipbuilding MOU]

You need to be a member to post comments. Become a member for free today!

Comments (2)

avatar
Attach images by dragging & dropping or by selecting them.
The maximum file size for uploads is MB. Only files are allowed.
 
The maximum number of 3 allowed files to upload has been reached. If you want to upload more files you have to delete one of the existing uploaded files first.
The maximum number of 3 allowed files to upload has been reached. If you want to upload more files you have to delete one of the existing uploaded files first.
Posting as
  • avatar
    We should have nothing to do with Chinese Shipbuilding . What we should be doing is equip all our ships with Laser Weapons. Most of our ships are underarmed and this an effective weapon to be used against air and sea attacks.
    0
  • avatar
    Steel shipbuilding in the US? Could this be building a design from another Australian ship designer/ builder? The designer I am referring to is reasonably small, so linking up with Australia’s only shipbuilder with a US yard would make sense (provided their design wins that USN contract of course).
    0