Australian Navy Shafted by Spanish Shipbuilder

Junior Officers from the Western Pacific Naval Symposium Junior Officer Interaction Program walk towards HMAS Supply before touring the ship in Sydney, New South Wales. (Lucinda Allanson/Royal Australian Navy)

Australia’s Chief of Navy says he is disappointed that a supply boat—aptly named HMAS Supply—was delivered with significant defects that prevented it from being used for an extended period.

“I am not satisfied with the availability of this ship,” Vice Admiral Mark Hammond told a parliamentary hearing on June 6. “There are defects in the design and delivery of the ship, the ship remains under repair.”

The only viable option the Navy had was to work on repairing the vessel, aided by the shipbuilder, Spanish firm Navantia, who the Vice Admiral said “are not shirking any responsibility for paying for this.”

But while it had accepted liability for the cost of repairs and was helping fix the ship under warranty, Mr. Hammond said Australia would not be compensated for the loss of its capability.

In Dry Dock Until 2025

He said he looks forward to receiving a “fit-for-purpose ship at an appropriate time.”

HMAS Supply is expected to be out of the water until at least 2025. The worst-case scenario for a new shaft, which measures 15 metres long and weighs 19 tonnes, is that it could take around 40 weeks to arrive from Europe.

When Greens Senator David Shoebridge suggested to another witness, head of maritime sustainment Steve Tiffin, that a straight propeller shaft was an important piece of a ship to get right the first time, he replied “Certainly it is.”

“You didn’t check the shaft was pointing in the right direction before you picked the ship up,” Senator Shoebridge contended, in what was at times a tense exchange with Navy senior officers at the Senate Estimates hearing.

However, the navy chief said Australian officials couldn’t inspect the ship during its construction in Spain due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and its alignment was a very complex process with small margins for error.

The issue was discovered during a review of a bearing, which also had to be replaced.

It remains under repair at Garden Island in Sydney.

The HMAS Supply is an Auxiliary Oiler Replenishment (AOR), a class of double-hulled ship. The Australian ships are based on the Spanish Navy’s Cantabria Class AORs.

AORs carry fuel, dry cargo, water, food, ammunition, equipment, and spare parts to provide operational support for deployed naval or combat forces operating far from port for longer periods.

In addition to replenishment, the vessels provide logistics support for the armed forces, combat against environmental pollution at sea, and support humanitarian and disaster relief operations.

The contract for two supply ships and infrastructure requirements cost taxpayers $1.3 billion.

AAP contributed to this report.