Australian Government and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI) concluded a contract, for the construction of three upgraded Mogami-class frigates for Australia’s General Purpose Frigate (GPF) program. In August 2025, the Australian government selected MHI’s upgraded Mogami-class frigate (4,800 ton type) as the preferred platform to proceed to the next stage in the selection process for the country’s GPF program. MHI then entered into contract negotiations with the Australian government, and has now concluded an agreement. Construction will begin at MHI’s Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works in cooperation with the Australian government, the Japanese government, and companies involved in building the GPFs, with the first completed frigate to be handed over by December 2029. The broad-based participation of Japanese and Australian companies in Australia’s GPF program is expected to strengthen human resource development in science and technology, as well as the foundations of the defense industry, in both countries. Through its Naval Ship & Maritime Systems business, MHI is contributing to the realization of safe and secure world.
The Mogami-class frigate is a Japanese, multi-mission stealth frigate for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF). The vessel has a length of 130 metres (426 ft 6 in), a breadth of 16 metres (52 ft 6 in), a standard displacement of 3,900 metric tons (3,800 long tons) with a full load displacement of about 5,500 metric tons (5,400 long tons). It has a maximum speed of over 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph).[18] The frigates will be powered by a Rolls-Royce MT30 gas turbine.Weapons for the 30DX include a Mk 45 gun, two remote weapon stations above the bridge, a 16-cell Mk 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS) at the bow, eight anti-ship missiles, one SeaRAM, an SH-60L helicopter, torpedoes, and decoy launchers. Another capability is to deploy and recover unmanned underwater vehicles (UUV), unmanned surface vehicles (USV),[20] and sea mines from the rear ramp beneath the helicopter deck. The stealthy design of both models is based on the research and development lessons learned from the Mitsubishi X-2 Shinshin, then: ATD-X, stealth fighter technology demonstrator, as both platforms are designed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
