President Donald Trump today highlighted a $3.7 billion private investment by defense technology company Anduril Industries to build a new shipyard at Sparrows Point in Baltimore County, Maryland. The facility, named Arsenal-2, will produce critical components for the U.S. Navy's Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarines.
The project pairs the Anduril investment with a Navy contract valued at up to $2.9 billion, bringing the total commitment to $6.6 billion. Officials expect the more than 2-million-square-foot facility to create 3,100 direct jobs and support over 11,000 indirect jobs nationwide once operational by the end of the decade. It is projected to generate about $2 billion in annual economic output, including $312 million in wages.
Trump participated in the event at the Tradepoint Atlantic site, a former Bethlehem Steel location, alongside Anduril executives and Navy officials. The initiative aims to address production shortfalls in the submarine industrial base and boost U.S. maritime capabilities amid competition with China. The Navy currently operates 26 Virginia-class submarines and seeks to reach a production rate of two per year around 2032.
Anduril will manufacture items such as torpedo tubes and doors at the site, with plans to expand into larger modules and hull sections. The company is already developing a similar facility in California. Administration officials noted the project could add roughly 9 million labor hours annually, equivalent to a 15 percent increase in submarine production capacity.
Maryland Governor Wes Moore, a Democrat, has backed the economic benefits for the state despite past criticisms of Trump. The project represents one of the largest private investments in Maryland in over a decade and revives large-scale manufacturing at the historic Sparrows Point location.
The effort aligns with broader administration priorities to strengthen the defense industrial base, increase domestic production, and support high-skilled manufacturing jobs. Construction is expected to follow permitting, with initial hiring targeted for 2029.
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