Significant Expansion in Mobile, Alabama
Austal USA, a renowned defense contractor, has initiated a groundbreaking $288 million expansion of its final assembly facility in Mobile, Alabama. This significant development will enable the plant to produce large steel modules for U.S. Navy and Coast Guard ships. The new facility, spanning over 192,000 square feet, will house an assembly bay designed for large-scale steel module production. This expansion is expected to generate 1,032 jobs over the next four years, with construction and operations slated to begin in summer 2026.
Advanced Facilities and Increased Capacity
The expanded site will boast over 1.5 million square feet of indoor manufacturing space, including a 117,000-square-foot steel panel, two module manufacturing facilities covering over 1 million square feet, and seven assembly bays providing over 400,000 square feet of indoor shipbuilding space. Additionally, the expansion will feature a waterfront support area and a state-of-the-art shiplift system to safely launch and retrieve vessels for maintenance and repair. This project is a key component of Austal USA’s broader expansion strategy, which commenced in March 2021.
Strategic Alignment with National Defense Goals
According to Austal USA President Michelle Kruger, this infrastructure expansion underscores the company’s significant growth trajectory. The investment aligns with the Department of Defense’s National Defense Industrial Strategy, aimed at establishing resilient supply chains to produce essential systems and equipment efficiently and cost-effectively. Recently, the U.S. Navy has been revising its contract with Austal USA, potentially increasing the value up to $3.2 billion. The initial $113.9 million contract for designing and building ocean surveillance ships was raised to $516 million in May. Moreover, the DOD’s Office of Industrial Base Policy awarded Austal USA and its subsidiary a $20 million contract to enhance the U.S. Navy shipbuilding industrial base and introduce advanced manufacturing capabilities at the Mobile shipyard.
