GOOSE CREEK, S.C., July 27, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – HII (NYSE: HII) hosted Australian Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy today at the company’s Newport News Shipbuilding Charleston Operations site in South Carolina.

The visit was held in support of the trilateral Australia, United Kingdom and United States (AUKUS) partnership. HII continues its commitment to supporting AUKUS and the optimal pathway for Australia’s acquisition of a conventionally armed, nuclear-powered, submarine capability and a broader partnership on advanced capabilities.

The visit included a tour of the production facility and discussions with company leaders about HII’s distributed shipbuilding initiative to increase shipbuilding throughput and meet the increased demand for ships. Under HII’s ownership, the site has increased production by more than 50% as it continues to ramp up in support of U.S. Navy programs.

“It was a pleasure to tour this facility and see firsthand the capability established here, and the impact it is already having on the U.S. submarine industrial base,” Conroy said.

“I look forward to seeing Australian-made parts coming through this, and other U.S. facilities, demonstrating the strength of the AUKUS partnership and our shared commitment to industrial uplift.”

NNS Charleston Operations is located on 45 acres along the Cooper River with more than 480,000 square feet of covered manufacturing space. It is strategically located within South Carolina’s rapidly growing maritime ecosystem, having both barge and rail access, capacity to expand, and growing access to the highly skilled maritime trades workforce.

“We are honored Minister Conroy chose to invest time with us at HII during his trip to the United States,” said Matt Needy, NNS vice president of Charleston Operations. “We value the opportunity to share best practices from our expanded operations, here in South Carolina, to help accelerate AUKUS momentum.”

HII is actively supporting a range of initiatives to advance the AUKUS trilateral security partnership. HII was awarded the contract to deliver the Australian Submarine Supplier Qualification (AUSSQ) Program, which accelerates the identification, development and qualification of Australian suppliers for integration into the United States submarine industrial base.

HII is also working with Australian industry and academia to develop the skilled workforce needed to support Australia’s nuclear-powered submarine enterprise. This includes educating and training thousands of engineers, maritime specialists, nuclear tradespeople and other professionals to support the enterprise across its full lifecycle.

A cornerstone initiative under AUKUS Pillar I, AUSSQ is strengthening Australia’s sovereign nuclear powered submarine capability by qualifying Australian small and medium-sized enterprises to participate in the U.S. and U.K. nuclear submarine supply chains. The program spans seven critical work packages supporting the construction and sustainment of Virginia-class submarines and the future SSN-AUKUS platform.

To date, AUSSQ has qualified 13 Australian suppliers, providing them with a pathway into U.S. and U.K. nuclear submarine programs and embedding Australian industry into AUKUS submarine production and sustainment.