Austal Delivers Third Joint High Speed Vessel

Austal Limited (Austal) (ASX:ASB) is pleased to announce it has successfully delivered Joint High Speed Vessel 3 (JHSV 3), USNS Millinocket, to the US Navy.

USNS Millinocket is the third JHSV built by Austal at its shipyard in Mobile, Alabama, under a 10 ship, US$1.6 billion contract.

Austal Chief Executive Officer Andrew Bellamy said the Joint High Speed Vessel program has matured through the implementation of productivity and efficiency improvements at Austal’s US shipyard since construction commenced on JHSV 1.

“We have taken a very proactive approach in making operational improvements at the shipyard through each step of the JHSV program,” Mr Bellamy said.

“It is pleasing to see the benefits of these improvements, with Austal’s JHSV program maturing into the phase of efficient, serial production of the vessels.”

Delivery of USNS Millinocket to the US Navy follows USNS Spearhead (JHSV 1), which was delivered in December 2012 and has been deployed, and USNS Choctaw County (JHSV 2), which was delivered in June 2013.

Ships currently under construction are JHSV 4, which was christened in January and is being prepared for sea trials, JHSV 5, which has begun final assembly, and JHSV 6, which commenced construction in January in the module manufacturing facility.

Five Independence-variant Littoral Combat Ships are also in construction at Austal’s US shipyard under the Company’s 10-ship, $3.5 billion contract from the US Navy. USS Jackson (LCS 6) was launched in December 2013 and is preparing for sea trials before delivery to the US Navy by the end of CY2014. USS Montgomery (LCS 8) is expected to be launched in Q4 FY2014, while LCS 10, LCS 12, and LCS 14 are in various stages of construction.