US Navy Seeks Contractors for $15B Puget Sound Shipyard Dry Dock Project

The US Navy is seeking contractors to build a new multi-mission dry dock and associated waterfront infrastructure at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility in Bremerton, Washington.

The indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity multiple-award construction contract has an aggregate maximum value of US$15 billion over a five-year base period and one five-year option. Proposals are due at 12:00 Pacific time on December 1, 2026.

The navy expects to select approximately five contractors, with major task orders ranging from US$2 billion to US$6 billion. The procurement is unrestricted.

The ceiling is lower than the US$30 billion, 10-year contract vehicle outlined in the navy’s earlier planning notices.

The pressure-relieved dry dock is planned for the area occupied by Dry Dock Three and portions of Piers Six and Seven. It will handle repair work on Ford- and Nimitz-class aircraft carriers, along with other surface ships and submarines.

The work is divided into four packages: marine works (US$2 billion–US$3 billion), the dry dock itself (US$3.5 billion–US$4.5 billion), infrastructure (US$3.5 billion–US$4.5 billion), and fabrication and delivery of the caisson (US$200 million–US$300 million).

Contract awards are anticipated in 2027, with the first major marine task order expected in June 2028. Major dry dock construction is expected to begin around 2030; the yard will continue its maintenance and modernisation work throughout.

At Bremerton, the navy has the West Coast’s sole shipyard dry dock capable of handling nuclear-powered aircraft carriers for maintenance and repair. The shipyard was established in 1891, and much of its infrastructure dates from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The project forms part of the navy’s shipyard infrastructure optimisation program, which covers the four public shipyards at Puget Sound, Pearl Harbor, Portsmouth and Norfolk.