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Australia Awards Ghost Shark Contract and Releases Defence Industry Strategy
Australia announced a contract for the Ghost Shark autonomous underwater vehicle and unveiled the Defence Industry Development Strategy on September 10, 2025. The moves include new funding and oversight reforms aimed at strengthening the domestic defense industrial base.
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Australia awarded a contract to Anduril Australia for the Ghost Shark autonomous underwater vehicle on September 10, 2025, at Fleet Base East in Sydney. The same day the government released the Defence Industry Development Strategy, the third major defense document issued in 2025 after the National Defence Strategy and Integrated Investment Plan in April.
Breaking Defense reported that the strategy includes an additional A$80 million through 2030 for the Defence Industry Development Grants Program, bringing total funding to A$250 million.
The government also reformed a A$3 billion fund originally established in 2018 to help Australian firms win overseas contracts. The Australian-built Ghost Shark was designated a priority export capability for the Defence Strategic Sales Office. Prime contractors will be required to expand the domestic defense workforce with emphasis on apprenticeships.
The government created the Defence Delivery Group to advise on project delivery. The group is scheduled to become the Defence Delivery Agency within one year, consolidating the Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group, Guided Weapons and Explosive Ordnance Group, and Naval Shipbuilding and Sustainment Group.
An internal review found average project costs rose 38 percent, or A$29 billion, from conception to decision.
