The Congressional Budget Office estimates the U.S. Navy’s procurement of new ships under its 2017 shipbuilding plan to cost approximately $566 billion in 2016 dollars over three decades.CBO said in a report published Tuesday the figure reflects an average annual cost of approximately $18.9 billion, up from the service branch’s estimate of $17 billion per year.
The agency also predicts the average cost of executing the 2017 shipbuilding plan per year to hit about $21 billion in 2016 dollars between fiscal 2017 and 2046, approximately $5 billion more than the average budget the military branch has received in previous decades.
The report is based on the evaluation of estimated outcomes in the 2017 shipbuilding plan in comparison with the 2014 force structure assessment that seeks to build and maintain a fleet of 308 combat ships.
The agency’s estimated annual new ship construction cost of $18.9 billion in the 2017 plan would be 36 percent higher than the Navy’s historical average annual funds of $13.9 billion in 2016 dollars, CBO added.
