Agency overseeing $368 billion AUKUS program to be examined<\/a><\/p>\n Former Defence Department secretary Dennis Richardson has been asked to oversee the structure and provide advice on the direction of the Australian Submarine Agency.<\/p>\n An ASA spokesperson said the BCG review was commissioned after the agency’s first year to ensure its operations were “fit-for-purpose”.<\/p>\n “Australia is on track to seeing the establishment of Submarine Rotational Force-West in 2027, when US nuclear-powered submarines will begin rotating out of HMAS Stirling,” they said.<\/p>\n “After the first year of operation, the ASA considered it timely and appropriate to consider how to optimise the ASA’s ability to deliver the nuclear-powered submarine program.”<\/p>\n They said the contract was extended in April and July 2025 and pointed to the body’s progress on boosting its workforce and infrastructure since its creation in 2023.<\/p>\n “The ASA engages a range of externally sourced specialist expertise to assist implementation and delivery of the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine program,” they said.<\/p>\n “The ASA is committed to developing Australia’s broader submarine enterprise to safely build, operate and maintain Australian conventionally-armed, nuclear-powered submarines. The ASA has transitioned from a Taskforce in a large Department to a growing Agency that is working to deliver the single biggest investment in defence capability in Australian history.”<\/p>\n Culture under strain<\/p>\n The creation of the ASA was billed as a milestone in Australia’s defence policy \u2014 the agency charged with delivering conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS pact. But cracks quickly appeared amid the fanfare.<\/p>\n The Australian Public Service Commission’s 2023 census ranked the ASA second-worst out of 104 agencies for staff wellbeing. Morale deteriorated further last September when the ABC revealed a senior director had resigned, deepening instability inside a workforce of 700 that includes a dozen senior military officers.<\/p>\n Beyond BCG’s ballooning contract, the ASA has also inked multi-million-dollar deals with McKinsey, Deloitte, KPMG and EY. McKinsey alone secured $9.5 million to help draft an “industry plan” to boost Australia’s submarine industrial base and workforce \u2014 a key tenet of delivering AUKUS.<\/p>\n The scale of outsourcing has fuelled fears the ASA is contracting out its core functions as it manages the most expensive defence project in Australian history.<\/p>\n Shadow Defence Minister Angus Taylor said the ASA was critical to delivering defence capability during the most dangerous strategic environment since WWII.<\/p>\n “If this agency is already struggling with morale, turnover and governance issues, that should be ringing alarm bells for the government,” he said.<\/p>\n “What has Richard Marles been doing while the agency responsible for our $368 billion AUKUS program has been left to drift? The ASA has only been in existence for a short time, yet already it is plagued with problems serious enough to require an extensive external review at taxpayers’ expense.”<\/p>\n Angus Taylor says the Australian Submarine Agency is plagued with problems despite only existing for a short time. (ABC News: Matt Roberts)<\/p>\n Greens senator David Shoebridge said the ASA was “sucking in hundreds of millions of dollars” despite not having a submarine.<\/p>\n “While it doesn’t have any submarines, it is producing review after review after review \u2014 at unknown public expense. It goes to show what a dangerous gamble this AUKUS project is and how much public money is being wasted on nuclear submarines we are likely never to get,” he said.<\/p>\n AUKUS review looms over Washington visit<\/p>\n The consultancy blow-out comes as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese prepares for a high-stakes meeting with US President Donald Trump on October 20, with AUKUS expected to dominate discussions.<\/p>\n A Pentagon review of the $368 billion pact \u2014 originally due earlier this year but now expected next month \u2014 is being led by US Under Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby, a previous critic of the deal. Mr Colby has previously warned submarines are a “scarce, critical commodity” and that America’s shipbuilding industry is already struggling to meet domestic demand.<\/p>\n However, Labor sources are confident that pillar one of the nuclear submarines pact will go ahead as planned with Canberra privately satisfied in Washington’s ability to ramp up its submarine production over the next couple of years.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n