Ghost Shark Factory Opens in Sydney - 1st Vehicle Off the Line Ahead of Schedule, Ready for Undersea Acceptance Testing

Just seven weeks after the Royal Australian Navy awarded a A$1.7 billion Program of Record, Anduril today officially opened its new, state-of-the-art Ghost Shark manufacturing facility in Sydney. The opening — attended by the Hon Pat Conroy MP, Minister for Defence Industry; Vice Admiral Mark Hammond AO, Chief of Navy; Dr Shane Arnott, SVP, Anduril Industries; and David Goodrich OAM, Chairman & CEO Anduril Australia — coincides with a major milestone: the first Ghost Shark Extra Large Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (XL-AUV) has rolled off the line ahead of schedule and is ready for sea acceptance testing ahead of planned delivery to the Royal Australian Navy in January 2026.

The factory opening follows the Royal Australian Navy’s award of a A$1.7BN contract to Anduril Australia to deliver a large fleet of Ghost Sharks over the next five years. Anduril announced the successful Program of Record designation after successfully completing the co-development contract and delivering three Ghost Shark XL-AUVs ahead of schedule and on-budget. This was a part of the AU$140M co-development contract to design and develop three Ghost Shark XL-AUVs in three years.

The new 7,400m² facility is purpose-built to produce Ghost Shark, and its commercial baseline the Dive-XL, at-scale and, subject to Government approval, for export to allies and partners around the world. It combines advanced robotic manufacturing, AI-driven logistics and a custom test tank for in-water verification of buoyancy, electrical systems and safety before sea trials.

The Ghost Shark manufacture program has commenced with Low-Rate Initial Production, moving to full scale production in 2026. It incorporates input from a supply chain of over 40 Australian SMEs and companies that provide a broad range of components, subcomponents and materials.

Key facts

• A$1.7 billion Program of Record awarded by the Royal Australian Navy.
• First vehicle off the line and ready for undersea testing; planned RAN delivery January 2026.
• Factory footprint: 7,400m² with integrated robotic production, AI ground vehicles and gantry tracking.
• Custom in-water test tank and adjacent engineering labs for live software and hardware tuning.
• Production ramp: Low-Rate Initial Production underway, transitioning to full-scale production in 2026.
• Supply chain: over 40 Australian SMEs contributing parts, components and materials.
• Local impact: more than 150 high-skilled jobs created and a strengthened sovereign supply chain.
• Beyond the XL-AUV, the facility is configured to manufacture Dive-XL and Dive-LD variants and is ready to support future platforms such as Anduril’s Copperhead family of high-speed Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
• Factory is ready to produce vehicles for export to allies and partners around the world (subject to Australian government approval)

“The Ghost Shark is the most high-tech long range autonomous underwater capability that exists in the world today and the Albanese Government is proud to have supported its development,” said the Hon Pat Conroy MP, Minister for Defence Industry. “The opening of this factory is about backing Australian ingenuity and innovation, but also securing hundreds of well-paid high-skilled jobs and a future made in Australia.”

David Goodrich OAM, Chairman & CEO, Anduril Australia, said: “Today marks a defining moment in our mission to bring sovereign undersea capability to Australia. With the opening of this new facility, we are not only building local infrastructure and workforce — we are investing in innovation, in partnerships, and in the future defence of our nation. Affordable, disruptive and distributed mass is a central tenet of undersea deterrence, and we look forward to supporting Australia and its allies by producing Ghost Sharks right here in Sydney.”