Construction of new facility to build submarines underway at Newport News shipyard

HII broke ground Feb. 8 on a new production facility, jointly funded by the Navy and the company, that will support nuclear submarine construction at Newport News Shipbuilding.

The production facility is one of three planned facilities furthering the construction and delivery of Columbia-class and Virginia-class submarines. The project is part of $1.9 billion in ongoing capital investments at the shipyard between 2016 and 2025. Work on the two other facilities is expected to start later this year.

The Newport News shipyard is one of only two capable of designing and building nuclear-powered submarines for the Navy. The shipyard is a major contractor and partner with General Dynamics Electric Boat in building the Columbia- and Virginia-class vessels.

The Navy has identified the Columbia-class as its top acquisition priority, the company said.