Anduril to Build Massive Maryland Shipyard for Virginia-Class Submarine Components

What exactly is Anduril building at Sparrows Point, and what work will the new facility perform?

Arsenal-2 is a new manufacturing facility at Tradepoint Atlantic’s Sparrows Point complex in Baltimore County. Anduril plans to invest $3.7 billion in it, with operations expected to begin in 2030. The project expands Anduril from defense technology into traditional naval shipbuilding supply work.

The facility will produce complex submarine components and large assemblies. Torpedo tubes are one planned product. High-bay halls, fabrication areas, flexible production lines and a 1,200-foot graving dock will support the work. Road, rail and marine links will move oversized assemblies.

Anduril will deliver these products to General Dynamics Electric Boat and HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding. Those companies will continue final submarine construction and assembly. Anduril will run production through ArsenalOS, software designed to manage fabrication, materials, inspections and other processes. The Maryland yard is intended to shift more work into parallel production.

What is a Virginia-class attack submarine, and which companies will still assemble the complete submarines?

A Virginia-class attack submarine is a nuclear-powered U.S. Navy submarine designed for offensive and other undersea missions. The article focuses on its production program rather than listing every mission. These submarines are among the Navy’s largest and most complex shipbuilding projects.

Anduril will not build complete submarines. Instead, Arsenal-2 will manufacture complex components and large assemblies, including planned torpedo tubes. Those products will be delivered to General Dynamics Electric Boat and HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding, which remain the lead shipbuilders.

The division of work matters because the Navy’s production rate is below its target. More component manufacturing can occur in parallel outside the two final-build companies. That could reduce bottlenecks in their supply chains while preserving their responsibility for final submarine construction and assembly. The facility is expected to begin operations in 2030.

How large is the project in dollars, facility size, jobs, and expected added production capacity?

Arsenal-2 is a $3.7 billion Anduril investment backed by a U.S. Navy contract worth up to $2.9 billion. Together, the planned spending could reach $6.6 billion. The project is therefore both a private industrial expansion and a government-supported effort to strengthen submarine production.

The Maryland facility will exceed 2 million square feet and is expected to create more than 3,100 direct jobs. Maryland officials and Anduril say it could support more than 11,000 additional jobs. The yard will include assembly halls, fabrication areas, flexible production lines and a 1,200-foot graving dock.

A senior Trump administration official said Arsenal-2 could eventually add about 9 million production labor hours each year. That equals roughly a 15% increase in Virginia-class capacity. The facility is expected to open in 2030, so its benefits will arrive later, not immediately. The Navy contract ties payments to demonstrated production results.

Why is the Navy producing only about 1.1 to 1.4 Virginia-class submarines per year when Congress generally funds two?

Congress has generally funded two Virginia-class submarines annually, but actual production has remained below that level. A Congressional Research Service report put recent output at roughly 1.1 to 1.4 submarines per year. The gap shows that funding boats does not automatically create the industrial ability to build them on schedule.

The central problems are workforce shortages and supply-chain difficulties across the submarine industrial base. Shipyards and suppliers need skilled workers, specialized materials and reliable production capacity. When any of those resources fall short, work slows across a complex network rather than at only one station.

The Navy wants to reach two submarines each year, then increase production to about 2.33 annually. That higher rate would support U.S. fleet requirements and commitments to Australia under AUKUS. Arsenal-2 is meant to help by adding parallel manufacturing capacity, including work on bottleneck items such as torpedo tubes.

What could happen to U.S. naval planning and the AUKUS agreement if submarine production remains below the Navy’s targets?

If production stays below target, the United States may struggle to provide enough submarines for its own fleet requirements. The Navy wants two Virginia-class submarines annually, then about 2.33 per year. Falling short would make that planned growth harder and could prolong delivery delays that already measure in years.

A concrete pressure point is AUKUS. The United States has committed to transfer submarines to Australia under that agreement. The same industrial base must support those commitments while supplying the U.S. Navy. Arsenal-2 is scheduled to open in 2030, when both demands are expected to be especially important.

Continued shortfalls would therefore affect planning, schedules and available capacity. The article does not specify a revised AUKUS timeline or a particular number of delayed transfers. It does show that the Navy and Congress are investing billions in shipyards, suppliers and workers to raise output before those pressures intensify.

Why is expanding component manufacturing an alternative to building another yard that constructs complete submarines?

Building another complete-submarine yard would require duplicating an enormous final-assembly operation. Arsenal-2 takes a narrower approach. It adds manufacturing space, workers and production lines for major components while Electric Boat and Newport News continue building the complete submarines.

The mechanism is parallel work. Anduril can fabricate components and large assemblies outside the existing lead shipyards, then deliver them for integration. Torpedo tubes are one example of a bottleneck the new operation plans to address. Its high-bay halls, flexible lines and transport connections are designed for large submarine parts.

This approach could increase output without changing which companies perform final construction. The Navy contract also ties payments to demonstrated production results. Anduril plans to begin component work in California before Maryland opens, gaining about a two-year process-development and qualification head start. The strategy does not solve the immediate backlog, but it targets capacity constraints ahead of 2030.

What is a submarine industrial base, and why do skilled workers, specialized suppliers, and production capacity determine how quickly complex military systems can be built?

The submarine industrial base is the network of shipyards, component manufacturers, suppliers, workers and production facilities needed to build submarines. It includes the companies that make specialized parts as well as the yards that perform final construction. The article describes this network as struggling to keep pace with demand.

Its limits are visible in Virginia-class production. Congress generally funds two submarines each year, yet recent output has been about 1.1 to 1.4. Workforce shortages and supply-chain problems slow the flow of work. A missing skilled worker, delayed component or crowded production line can hold up later construction.

Capacity determines how quickly complex military systems can move from plans to finished vessels. Arsenal-2 illustrates the response: it would add more than 3,100 direct jobs, new manufacturing space and about 9 million annual labor hours. Its projected 15% capacity increase could help, though the facility will not open until 2030.

Key Facts:

📌 Arsenal-2 will occupy more than 2 million square feet at Sparrows Point.

📌 Anduril plans to manufacture components and large submarine assemblies.

📌 Electric Boat and Newport News will continue final submarine construction.

📌 Virginia-class boats are U.S. Navy nuclear-powered attack submarines.

📌 Anduril will build components, not complete submarines.

📌 Electric Boat and Newport News remain the final builders.

📌 Anduril plans to invest $3.7 billion in Arsenal-2.