Australian shipbuilder Austral named former Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer as its next chairman, according to a late Wednesday notification to the Australian Security and Exchange Commission.
Spencer – who served as SECNAV from 2017 until 2019– will replace outgoing chair and Austal founder John Rothwell on July 1, according to the announcement, which was issued on Thursday morning Australia time.
According to the statement, the search for Rothwell’s replacement considered candidates with relationships with the U.S. and Australian defense business sectors, business experience and an understanding of the U.S. industrial base.
“Richard was at the top of the list, and I’m pleased he was receptive to the approach,” reads a statement from Rothwell.
Before serving as Navy Secretary, Spencer was chief financial officer of Intercontinental Exchange, an online commodities trader. He was also the vice chair of the New York Board of Trade. Before his business career, he served in the Marine Corps from 1976 to 1981 as a CH-46 helicopter pilot.
The appointment of Spencer as the chair centers the Australian business on the U.S. naval construction subsidiary set up initially to build the aluminum Independence-class Littoral Combat Ships at its Mobile, Ala., shipyard. Austal USA has expanded to include steel hull ships like the Navy’s Navajo-class towing, salvage and rescue ship (T-ATS) and the Heritage-class Offshore Patrol Cutter. Austal USA has also been tapped to build outsourced components for the Virginia-class nuclear attack submarine program and is considered a contender for the Constellation-class frigate
In February, Austal USA announced a $250 million expansion to create an additional facility to expand its steel production.
Spencer’s entrance to Austal follows a scrapped April attempt from Hanwha Systems and Hanwha Ocean to acquire Austal USA. The South Korean shipbuilder made a $662 million, unsolicited bid for the Mobile yard that was rejected for U.S. national security concerns, a Hanwha spokesperson told Reuters.
Last week, Hanwha made a bid to acquire Philly Shipyard for $100 million.
