Australian Shipbuilding Industries (ASI)
Australian Shipbuilding Industries (later Tenix Western Australia, and then BAE Maritime) was established in 1969 as a manufacture of ships and importer and exporter, and remained in business as such until around the year 1990. The Australian Marine Complex Common User Facility was located in Henderson, Western Australia. Built to support the RAN and commercial vessels in WA, the Marine Support Facility (MSF), comprising a shiplift and shore-transfer facility, was constructed at Henderson under a three-way arrangement between the WA government, the Department of Defence and Australian Shipbuilding Industries, later part of Transfield Defence Systems (TDS). It was commissioned in January 1989.
In 1979, the Australian and New Zealand Governments, at the request of Pacific Island nations, sent defence representatives into the South-West Pacific region to assess surveillance and maritime patrol requirements. The governments of a number of the Pacific nations expressed their concern about the need for a suitable naval patrol force to meet their new surveillance requirements. The Australian government responded by creating the Defence Cooperation Project (DCP), to provide suitable patrol vessels, training and infrastructure to island nations in the region. The Pacific Patrol Boat Systems Program Office was created within the Minor War Vessels Branch of the RAN procurement organisation. The tender for the vessels was released in August 1984, and was awarded to Australian Shipbuilding Industries Pty Ltd (now Tenix Western Australia) in September 1985. The first of ten vessels was to be delivered in early 1987.
In July 1997 TDS acquired the Commonwealth interest in the shiplift which was later part of the BAE Systems facility at the MSF where the ASMD upgrade for the Anzac-class frigates was undertaken. Tenix grew from the Anzac ship project, which used Williamstown facilities previously owned by government, and they created a whole new workforce to undertake the build program.
Originally established as Australian Shipbuilding Industries (ASI) in 1968, Tenix Shipbuilding WA, Henderson, was the new kid in the Australian fast ferry picture. As a division of Tenix Defence Systems, Tenix Shipbuilding WA was part of one of Australia's largest shipbuilding groups. Most recently, Tenix completed a 49 m x 16 m catamaran ferry capable of carrying 350 passengers and 63 cars or 42 cars plus 4 trucks for Kangaroo Island Sealink. Currently, it was constructing two search and rescue vessels for the Philippines Coast Guard under a contract worth almost $A40 million.
In supporting the ANZAC ships home ported in Western Australia, Tenix Western Australia was able to tap into a comprehensive supply chain in Australia and New Zealand that was already conditioned by extensive involvement in the construction of the ANZAC ships. The availability of a tested supply chain greatly reduced the cost, schedule and technical risk inherent in local support of the ANZAC ships. Specifically, under the ANZAC Ship build contract, Tenix contracted directly with original equipment manufacturers (OEM) for provision of such major items as, for example, propulsion engines. This enabled Tenix to extend these relationships in the provision of in-service support of the ANZACS, either directly by the OEM or by establishing dedicated local agents for the support of specific items.
The Tenix site was immediately adjacent to the common user facility in Henderson. Tenix had undertaken a number of naval repairs on Anzac frigates using that facility. Tenix converted the civilian oil tanker Delos into an underway replenishment ship for the Australian Navy. It became the HMAS Sirius. The availability of that infrastructure allows Tenix to take on major projects without the barrier to entry that the company might otherwise experience if it had to go out and capitalise all of that alone.
In June 2008, Sydney's wealthy Salteri family sold the defense-contracting arm of Tenix for $775 million to British giant BAE Systems, retaining the civil contracting business, which works across the electricity, water, infrastructure and construction sectors. BAe Systems bought Tenix Defence Land Systems and Aviation, the armored vehicle and naval specialist, for A$775m, making it Australia’s largest defence contractor. The deal was signed in Sydney on 18 January 2008, and remained subject to regulatory approvals in both Canberra and Washington DC. It makes Adelaide-based BAE Systems Australia the country’s biggest defence contractor, with revenues of $1.21 billion and a workforce of 5,300 personnel. In 2007, according to Australian Defence Magazine’s Top 40 listing, Tenix reported revenues from its defence businesses of $650 million and a workforce of 2,500 personnel. BAE Systems had revenues of $560 million with a 2,800-strong workforce. The deal meant BAE Systems acquired Tenix’s two warship and patrol boat construction yards at Williamstown and Henderson. BAE bought into Tenix knowing that a contract was signed to build destroyers in Spain.
The Salteri family sold contractor Tenix to Downer EDI for $300 million, as revealed by Fairfax Media on 20 October 2014. Tenix chairman Paul Salteri said in a memo to staff that "the decision to sell the business to Downer Group has been difficult for shareholders, as we believed the business is well positioned in its markets to take advantage of exciting growth opportunities. Our decision to change from our strategy to raise external capital funding via either an equity sell-down or IPO was a difficult one but ultimately in the best interests of the company and the employees".
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