Australia's ASC (formerly the Australian Submarine Corporation) has said that it welcomed the Australian Federal Government's announcement of a new Australian Submarine Programme Office.
The office will be established in Adelaide, South Australia, in March.
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the ASC, Steve Ludlam said the new project office would pave the way towards closer working relationships between the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), Defence Materiel Organisation (DMO) and ASC.
"ASC is committed towards improving the overall availability and affordability of the Collins-class submarines; a commitment that has already seen a large restructure within our organisation," Mr Ludlam said.
"Our goal is to demonstrate exemplary performance in the maintenance and repair
of Australia's submarines and, by working side-by-side with the Navy and DMO, we are well on the way to achieving this objective."
ASC is the nation's last remaining Australian-owned prime defence contractor. The company constructed the Collins-class submarines and today delivers design, upgrade and maintenance services for the submarines through-life.
ASC is also the shipbuilder of Australia's next generation warships, the Hobart-class Air Warfare Destroyers.