A new maritime research and testing facility will be established in Northern Tasmania under a partnership between the University of Tasmania’s Australian Maritime College (AMC) and UK firm SubSea Craft.
Announced Wednesday by the state government, the agreement will see a facility operating at the AMC’s Beauty Point campus in Northern Tasmania.
It bolsters the university and AMC’s ongoing attempt to build a a $30 million Defence and Maritime Innovation and Design Precinct.
The SubSea Craft facility will be a 250 m² waterfront-site housing technical workshops, offices and collaborative spaces designed to accelerate maritime technology research, trials and product evaluation.
It is expected to begin operations in early 2026 to support SubSea Craft’s goal of developing and validating next-generation surface and subsurface maritime platforms for defence and security operations.
AMC’s principal, Mal Wise the facility is an important step toward the innovation district and will bring researchers closer to industry innovation.
“It brings industry and academia together in a way that gives our students and staff exposure to the technologies defining the future of maritime operations,” Mr Wise said.
SubSea Craft is a UK marine tech company developing several advanced platforms, including un-crewed and submersible vessels. It is partnering with Australian robotics firm Greenrom on one of the platforms as part of an AUKUS teaming effort.
The UK company’s chief executive Camilla Martin said the northern Tasmania facility will provide “the ideal environment for our team to develop, test and refine emerging technologies that enhance operational capability in the most demanding environments”.
The Tasmanian government welcomed the move as a boost to the state’s emerging role in Australia’s defence and maritime-innovation ecosystem.
Minister for Business, Industry & Resources Felix Ellis said the agreement is “testament to AMC’s world-class research and testing infrastructure, and the specialist knowledge of the researchers and staff at AMC”.
He added the state government will support the AMC and University of Tasmania’s bigger plan for a maritime innovation precinct.
“Major national and international companies are seeking out the Tasmanian Defence Precinct, to utilise our specialist maritime facilities and work side by side with the best researchers to deliver new technologies and platforms,” Mr Ellis said.
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