US Navy wants to order 20 warships from Wis., Ala.

MILWAUKEE -- Production costs for the latest class of warships have come down so much that the U.S. Navy wants to double its planned orders from shipbuilders in Wisconsin and Alabama, Sen. Herb Kohl said Thursday.

The Navy had planned to award a single contract for 10 ships to either Marinette Marine Corp. in Marinette, Wis., or Austal USA in Mobile, Ala. The Democratic senator from Wisconsin said the Navy has told him it now wants to order 10 ships from each company.

"I have spoken to the Secretary of the Navy about this change in strategy and he agrees that it will require congressional approval this year," Kohl said in remarks prepared for an appearance in Milwaukee. "But the initial signs are positive that there will be support to make this change as part of the end-of-year budget."

If Congress doesn't approve the request to submit two orders for 20 ships, the Navy will revert to awarding a single contract for 10 ships, said Lt. Courtney Hillson, a Navy spokeswoman.

The contracts would be for littoral combat ships. The speedy warships are designed to conduct water combat immediately off an enemy's shore. They can be used to hunt submarines and pirates, defend ground troops and support unmanned aerial vehicles such as Predator drones, Kohl said.

The combat ships also are designed for quick modification rather than a single purpose. For example, a ship's anti-submarine package could be swapped out for a mine-warfare package if combat conditions change.

Each contract could create thousands of jobs. Marinette Marine would grow from 800 to 1,800 workers within five years, company spokesman Jim LaCosse said.

A message left with Austal was not immediately returned. However, Republican Sen. Richard Shelby of Alabama said a local deal would add almost 2,000 jobs in south Alabama for Austal and related suppliers.

The city of Marinette sits on the Wisconsin-Michigan border. About 500 of the new jobs at Marinette Marine would go to Michigan residents, said Sen. Carl Levin, the Michigan Democrat who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The announcement "is really terrific news for our entire state," he said on a teleconference Thursday.

Both Austal and Marinette Marine would be expected to produce two ships per year for five years. Austal partners with General Dynamics Corp. in Falls Church, Va.

Levin said the Navy hasn't said how much the Marinette and Austal bids were, although he said they came in under the congressional cap of $480 million per ship.