Shipbuilder Austal USA says that construction work will start this summer on a major shipyard expansion announced last year. In June 2023 Larry Ryder, Austal USA’s vice president for business development and external affairs, said that anticipated growth could push Austal’s workforce from about 3,000 to a potential record high of around 5,000. Ryder said at the time that the company had purchased additional land and that new facilities would include a third assembly hall, larger than the two that currently stand on the waterfront across from downtown Mobile.