U.S. Navy awards $1.27B Virginia-class sub contract

The United States Navy has awarded General Dynamics Electric Boat a $1.27 billion contract modification for continued engineering and design support for the Virginia-class submarine program, adding to a recent string of major investments across the service’s undersea fleet.

The award, issued by Naval Sea Systems Command, covers lead yard support, development studies, and design work under an existing contract. The modification is valued at $1,265,790,364, with options that could raise the total value of the contract change to $2,491,982,722 if fully exercised.

Most of the work — 91% — will be carried out in Groton, Connecticut, where Electric Boat leads much of the Navy’s submarine construction and engineering work. Additional work will take place in Newport News, Virginia, with smaller portions in Newport and Quonset Point, Rhode Island. The contract runs through April 2027.

This is not a new hull procurement award, but it is a key part of keeping the Virginia-class production line moving. Lead yard support covers the engineering backbone of the program, including technical updates, production fixes, design refinements, and support for boats already under construction as well as future submarines.

The latest award follows the Navy’s recently reported $15.4 billion Columbia-class submarine contract action, linking two of the service’s most important shipbuilding priorities.

Together, the Virginia-class and Columbia-class programs form the core of the Navy’s long-term undersea strategy. The Virginia-class remains the backbone of the attack submarine fleet, handling intelligence collection, anti-submarine warfare, strike operations, and forward undersea presence.

The Columbia-class, by contrast, is being built to replace the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines, which carry the sea-based leg of the United States’ nuclear deterrent.

Seen together, the two awards underscore the scale of current U.S. investment in submarine modernization.