NAVFAC outlines $100M in projects to expand submarine support at Polaris Point
According to information shared with the Journal, the Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command is planning several projects to support submarine operations on Guam.
NAVFAC is developing a new submarine pier at Polaris Point that will accommodate up to four homeported Virginia-class submarines or a combination of submarines and a submarine tender.
A $97 million contract was awarded to build a 17,000-square-foot facility with an accompanying battery energy storage system and microgrid controller. The project is expected to be completed by June 2028.
“Our project will help facilitate wharf improvements, upgrades to utility systems, and construction of new facilities to support submarine operations,” according to a presentation by Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 133. NMCB 133 has been deployed to Guam and Tinian since September 2025.
Seabees assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion conduct earthwork on the Polaris Point access road project on Sept. 8 in Santa Rita. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Andrew Waters
Additionally, NMCB 133 said a $3 million project is underway to construct an unimproved gravel road from Marine Corps Drive through the jungle to the Polaris Point Submarine Base.
Work includes clearing 18 acres of vegetation, building a 2,687-foot-long, 48-foot-wide gravel road with five-foot shoulders, and installing erosion control systems consisting of culverts, headwalls, swales, and basins. The project also includes about 1,300 linear feet of low-security fencing, 100 linear feet of high-security fencing, and a 24-foot-wide anti-terrorism/force protection gate.
However, NMCB 133 reported that material procurement, unexploded ordnance, equipment availability, lack of project crew continuity, and environmental challenges have delayed progress. mbj
With Super Typhoon Bavi now packing maximum sustained winds of 160 mph and forecast to strengthen further as it moves toward the Marianas, emergency officials are urging businesses and residents to treat this weekend as their critical window to prepare for potentially damaging winds.
Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands are now in Condition of Readiness 3 as Typhoon Bavi approaches, with both governors urging residents and businesses to use the remaining hours of fair weather to prepare.
Task Force Talon relinquished command to the 3rd Battalion, 43rd Air Defense Artillery Regiment (3-43 ADA), ushering in a new battalion to take over Guam’s air missile defense systems.
Emergency management agencies across the region are urging residents and businesses to execute disaster preparedness plans as Tropical Storm 09W is forecast to rapidly intensify and potentially strike Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands as a Category four super typhoon.
