The Whiskey Project Group has officially opened a 60,000sq ft manufacturing and sustainment facility in Edenton, North Carolina, as part of a planned US$10 million investment in its American operations.
The 50-acre waterfront site will serve as the Australian company’s primary US production hub. TWPG expects the operation to support more than 200 jobs as it expands, although North Carolina officials said the initial phase is expected to create 30 positions.
The opening follows a US$36 million contract to supply tactical watercraft through September 2029. TWPG has also been selected as one of eight manufacturers for a US Navy programme covering up to 474 composite rigid-hulled inflatable boats.
The programme has a potential aggregate value of US$650 million if all options are exercised, with that total shared across participating manufacturers.
Increased capacity
The facility will build and support Whiskey, NAiAD and VYCOR watercraft for defence, government and commercial operators. It can handle aluminium and composite construction, engineering, maintenance and technical services, with larger vessels planned as capacity increases.
The project was officially opened at a ceremony attended by North Carolina governor Josh Stein, Congressman Don Davis, local officials and industry representatives.
“The United States is central to our future, and we’re backing that commitment by investing in local manufacturing, skilled jobs and the capability to build and sustain advanced watercraft here in North Carolina,” said TWPG founder and chief executive Darren Schuback.
“This is about more than opening a factory; it’s about building long-term capability to support US defence, law enforcement and commercial customers and strengthen America’s maritime industrial base.”
Dual-hub model
TWPG was founded by former Royal Australian Navy clearance divers. The Edenton operation forms part of a dual-hub model linking US production with design, engineering, manufacturing and sustainment resources in Yamba and Newcastle, Australia, and Picton, New Zealand.
The company says the structure will increase production capacity across the Pacific while allowing vessels to be manufactured, maintained and supported closer to American customers.
Engineering, design and programme expertise from Australia and industry partners will support the Edenton builds.
“We’re bringing that innovation together with the talent and strength of American manufacturing to build world-class watercraft in the US, with American workers, for the operators who depend on them,” said Schuback.
