The price tag for Australia's AUKUS submarine shipyard has exploded to $30 billion—nearly double early estimates—but Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is waving away concerns about the eye-watering cost blowout.
The revelation, reported by The Guardian, brings the total AUKUS program cost closer to $400 billion, making it the most expensive defense project in Australian history by an order of magnitude.
Albanese told reporters the investment was essential for Australia's security in an increasingly contested Indo-Pacific region. "This is about our sovereign capability," he said, dismissing critics who questioned whether the country could afford such massive defense spending while hospitals and schools face funding pressures.
Mate, that's a lot of money for a shipyard that won't produce a submarine for another decade. And the subs themselves? They're still years away from hitting the water.
The OSBORNE shipyard in South Australia is being massively expanded to build the nuclear-powered attack submarines under the AUKUS partnership with the United States and United Kingdom. Initial cost estimates suggested the shipyard work would run around $15-20 billion, but infrastructure requirements and workforce training needs have pushed costs far higher.
Opposition defense critics are demanding transparency on total program costs. Shadow defense minister Andrew Hastie said Australians deserved "the full picture" on AUKUS spending, though he stopped short of opposing the program itself.
The cost blowout comes as China continues expanding its naval capabilities in the Pacific and signing security agreements with island nations including Solomon Islands and potentially Kiribati. Australia's defense establishment argues the AUKUS submarines are essential to maintaining regional stability.
But critics point out that $400 billion would fund an enormous amount of soft-power Pacific engagement—the kind that might actually counter China's influence more effectively than submarines that won't arrive until the 2040s.
The Pacific Islands Forum has been notably quiet on AUKUS, though several island leaders have privately expressed concern about nuclear-powered vessels in Pacific waters. New Zealand maintains its nuclear-free policy and won't allow the submarines in its waters.
For Australia, the question isn't whether AUKUS proceeds—both major parties support it—but whether the country can afford its Pacific ambitions alongside mounting domestic needs. At $30 billion just for the shipyard, that's becoming a harder question to answer.
