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HII wins contract for Australian submarine supplier pilot program

Newport News-based has been awarded a contract from the Australian government to develop and run the new Australian Submarine Supplier Qualification (AUSSQ) pilot program that will build a submarine supply chain between the United States and over the next two years, announced March 11.

The contract’s initial value is about $6 million in U.S. dollars, a small amount for HII, which is the nation’s largest military shipbuilder and runs the state’s biggest industrial employer, . However, the pilot program is “a significant milestone in building a resilient and globally integrated supply chain for nuclear-powered submarines,” HII President and CEO Chris Kastner said in a statement.

AUSSQ is part of AUKUS, a 2021 agreement between the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia, in which the U.S. and the U.K. will share nuclear propulsion with Australia, and the Royal Australian Navy will acquire at least eight nuclear-powered submarines, including three to five Virginia-class subs, in the 2030s.

Meanwhile, Australian shipbuilders are making plans to come to Virginia for training to become HII suppliers. HII’s Canberra, Australia, location will host the AUSSQ pilot program, preparing Australian suppliers to eventually qualify for contracts in the U.S. submarine industrial base.

Announced by the Australian government’s submarine agency on March 5, AUSSQ “will use a B2B model, enabling to work directly with Australian businesses to qualify both the businesses and their products, and subsequently assist them to tender for supply into the US programs,” according to the submarine industry strategy.

Until recently, Australia had basically no nuclear industry, as a signatory to the international Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, and its aging submarine fleet is in need of replacement with nuclear-powered submarines. The U.S. and the U.K. have shared nuclear propulsion technology for more than 60 years now, and AUKUS includes Australia in that relationship.

“An Australian submarine industrial base capable of building and sustaining a persistent, potent and sovereign multiclass submarine capability is vital to the of Australia, and this pilot initiative with HII Australia is another important step to this being achieved,” Richard Marles, deputy prime minister of Australia and also the nation’s defense minister, said in a statement.

According to this week’s announcement, HII will provide technical guidance and implement best practices to provide Australian suppliers with precise specifications required to produce components, similar to its efforts in the United States, where the company spends approximately $1 billion with more than 2,000 contractors annually, including about $500 million going to small businesses.

“HII has a long history of working with suppliers to ensure they meet the highest standards in safety, security and performance,” Kastner said. “We welcome Australian partners to help build out this critical nuclear shipbuilding capability and ensure the long-term success of AUKUS.”

In January, HII closed on its purchase of a metal fabrication manufacturing facility in South Carolina, which is operating as part of NNS.

Feds to consider ‘compelling offers’ for real estate

The ‘s push to sell federal office buildings across the nation appears to be far from dead.

A revised version of the “non-core” federal properties list is being prepared, a spokesperson for the General Services Administration, the federal property management agency, stated on Monday.

“We anticipate the list will be republished in the near future after we evaluate this initial input and determine how we can make it easier for stakeholders to understand the nuances of the assets listed,” stated the GSA spokesperson, who declined to be named.

Last week, the GSA posted and then took down a list of “non-core” federal properties to be sold. It’s unclear if the buildings will be added to the market, although the agency is listening to offers, according to the spokesperson.

A glut of office space

The Trump administration’s threat to unload large-scale federal office buildings now risks selling into a weak market.

Substantial economic data suggests the office market, particularly in ‘s urban core, where the federal buildings are located, is in a fragile recovery that could be washed away by a flash flood of unneeded inventory.

Greg Goodman, co-president of -based management company Downtown Group, noted that in his market, Portland has approximately 10.5 million square feet of vacant office space. In a good year, the market absorbs about 400,000 square feet — meaning Portland has about a 25-year supply of vacant office space.

Given that reality, if the wants to dispose of office space, waiting may not make sense, Goodman said. “The market is where the market is, and if you want to wait, you’re going to be waiting a while.”

Net absorption in Portland was negative 964,776 square feet in 2024, according to JLL, meaning tenants put nearly 1 million square feet back into the market. Urban office vacancy hit 29.9 percent and may not have reached its peak, according to analysts.

“Near-term negative absorption is expected to persist as two sizable occupancy losses remain on the horizon,” JLL stated in its fourth-quarter report, citing moves by U.S. and Standard Insurance.

“However, Portland office vacancy is approaching its peak and positive absorption is expected after the market works through these announced give-backs,” JLL reported.

Pain in Portland’s office market appears to be spreading. Last week, lender Ready Capital indicated on a call with investors that it was considering taking possession of the Block 216 tower, which includes 134,000 square feet of office space on five floors in addition to a Ritz-Carlton hotel, condominiums and retail space.

Investors have seen a “flight to quality,” where new, Class-A office buildings are performing better than their older peers. Some firms and other professional services firms have committed to downtown office space, signing lengthy leases. Still, the office market remains far from its pre-pandemic peak.

“It’s definitely weak,” Goodman said.

Investors see opportunities

Yet some investors are skeptical that a major federal office sell-off will come to pass.

Menashe Properties doubled down on urban office space when it purchased the Montgomery Park building for $33 million in August 2024. Jordan Menashe, the firm’s CEO, said he doesn’t expect to purge government office space.

“It would inflict too much pain,” he said. “It doesn’t make sense.”

Menashe said some federal agencies could choose to execute sale-leasebacks.

“Remember,” Menashe said of Trump, “he’s a real estate guy.”

The Trump administration’s “noise first and think later strategy is backfiring,” Buzz Ellis, managing director for JLL in Portland, stated in an email.

“Many of those federal buildings have significant infrastructure in them,” he added.

But Goodman said it makes sense for the federal government to consider selling real estate.

“If they’re signing a lease in the building and then selling it, that’s great,” he said.

Institutional investors will line up to purchase the buildings, Goodman said.

“Institutions will buy these as financial instruments,” he said. “There is no better credit than the federal government. If you have a 20-year lease, that’s better than a 20-year bond.”

Oregon’s state government should also consider sale-leasebacks of some of its real estate, Goodman said.

Menashe said he’s noticed signs of life in the office market. Competition has increased among institutional investors such as Life, which has snapped up distressed office properties in San Francisco.

“The institutions are back,” he said.

Return to what office?

The GSA’s website states the government is “identifying buildings and facilities that are not core to government operations, or non-core properties, for disposal. Selling ensures that taxpayer dollars are no longer spent on vacant or underutilized federal spaces. Disposing of these assets helps eliminate costly maintenance and allows us to reinvest in high-quality work environments that support agency missions.”

The initial “non-core” property list also included the Washington headquarters of numerous federal agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Labor and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, The Associated Press reported.

“To be clear, just because an asset is on the list doesn’t mean it’s immediately for sale,” the GSA spokesperson stated. “However, we will consider compelling offers (in accordance with applicable laws and regulations) and do what’s best for the needs of the federal government and taxpayer.”

The GSA spokesperson stated that the goal of publishing a list of “non-core” real estate assets was two-fold: to “align with the president’s direction to bring federal employees back to high-performing office spaces throughout the country” and to “drive maximum value for the federal real estate footprint for the benefit of the American taxpayer.”

The move to sell off federal offices is in addition to lease cancellations that DOGE (the Department of Government Efficiency) is also considering, according to reports.

Some commentators have noted that the Trump administration’s push to sell federal buildings comes at the same time as the administration has ordered workers back to the office. The Office of Personnel Management, in a Jan. 28 email, told federal workers, “The substantial majority of federal employees who have been working remotely since Covid will be required to return to their physical offices five days a week,” The Associated Press reported.

That matches comments from Trump, who said publicly, “You have to go to your office and work. Otherwise, you’re not going to have a job.”

Hitt acquires Central Consulting & Contracting

National commercial Hitt announced Tuesday that it has acquired health care firm .

Headquartered in , provides commercial construction services throughout the country, including complex core and shell buildings, renovations, interior fit-outs and routine service work.  The company has 14 office locations and job sites nationwide and says the strengthens the company’s presence in the tri-state area of , New Jersey and Connecticut.

A company spokesperson declined to reveal how much Hitt spent in the acquisition.

Founded in 1986, Central has collectively managed nearly $1 billion in construction projects and has offices in Newark, New Jersey and New York City. Hitt says that combining its national resources with Central’s “deep industry experience” will help better position the company to meet the growing demand for complex medical facilities in one of the country’s largest and fastest-growing health care markets.

“For more than 30 years, Central has been a trusted leader in health care construction, earning a strong reputation across the New York region,” said Hitt Vice President and New York Office Leader Andre Grebenstein in a statement. “We’re proud to welcome their team of experts to Hitt. Their specialized industry knowledge, commitment to quality, and strong relationships will be invaluable as we continue to expand in this key market.”

Hitt cites Central’s long-standing relationships with major health care institutions — including Englewood Health, Montefiore Health System and St. Barnabas Health System Bronx — as a positive feature in the acquisition. Central’s Founder and CEO Richard Simone joined Hitt’s New York team as vice president, which HITT says will be helpful due to his decades of experience.

Simone will work closely with Hitt’s New York leadership to provide a seamless transition. Central’s team members have also joined Hitt, expanding the firm’s presence in the area to more than 70 New York-based team members.

“Joining forces with Hitt marks an exciting new chapter for Central and our clients,” said Simone in a statement. “Our shared values, dedication to quality, and passion for health care construction make this a perfect partnership.”

Hitt was founded in 1937 and today employs nearly 1,900 team members nationwide. The company says its 2024 projected revenues are $8.4 billion. In January, the company announced it broke ground on a new 270,000-square-foot headquarters building at 7125 West Falls Station Boulevard near the West Falls Church Metro station in Falls Church. Hitt expects the new headquarters to be ready in early 2027.

Why let Big Tech destroy our climate?

As the globe struggles to meet current climate goals, a new threat is emerging.

The threat is coming from Big Tech companies like Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, Alphabet (Google) and Meta (Facebook). Together, these companies represent a sector that dominates the market. At $3.6 trillion, Apple is now seven times the size of ExxonMobil, the nation’s leading oil company.

And Big Tech is demanding big resources: Tech companies are already major electricity consumers and are now calling for a major of to meet the demands of increased cloud computing and artificial intelligence utilization. The electricity demand from data centers is forecasted to double or even triple by 2030. are using this forecast to justify a major buildout of new gas-fired electricity generation — a move that could undo much of the progress we were making on climate change.

The U.S. utility industry is planning for a level of growth that is unprecedented in the last two decades, thanks largely to these data centers. Two years ago, the utility predicted 23 gigawatts (GW) of demand growth over the next five years; last year, the prediction exploded to 128 GW, more than five times higher. The main driver? More than 90 GW of projected new data centers, which would cause nationwide electricity demand to increase almost 16% by 2029.

Before explosive data center growth took off within the past two years, serious system modeling emphasized that maintaining current lifestyles implied the need for an unprecedented buildout of renewable energy from now through 2050 and unprecedented levels of capital deployment into the clean energy transition in the United States. We are already dangerously far behind.

Forecasts of massive data center demand would make those already “unprecedented” numbers even larger and more difficult to achieve, even if the proposed data centers were all powered by renewable energy (hardly the current plan). Utilities in just four states — Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia — are planning a buildout of natural gas infrastructure equivalent to the energy demand of about 12 million households.

Virginia is the largest hotspot for data centers, which account for more than a quarter of the state’s entire electricity consumption. Virginia’s electricity consumption is projected to more than double by 2040, with more than 85% of growth coming from data centers. In 2040, data centers are projected to comprise fully two-thirds of Virginia’s electricity demand — double the consumption of residents and all other businesses and industry combined.

The (IEEFA) recently published an analysis arguing that utilities may be poised to overbuild natural gas infrastructure for demand that may not fully materialize. The recent revelation of the apparently far more energy-efficient Chinese AI model DeepSeek has further called into question Big Tech’s forecasts.

To add insult to grave injury, Big Tech is also insisting that we subsidize their profligate electricity usage. In the absence of much stronger action from regulators, all transmission lines and power plants that get added to the grid solely because of data center energy demand will be paid for by all electricity consumers. In Virginia, the average residential electric bill will increase by $170 to $440 a year — between $14 and $37 every month. In other words, without a moment to pause and evaluate realistic needs and renewable energy sources, we will subsidize the largest companies in the world for the privilege of locking us in to future fossil fuel use.

Cathy Kunkel ([email protected]) is an IEEFA energy consultant. She also served as an IEEFA energy analyst for 7 years, researching Appalachian natural gas pipelines and drilling; electric utility mergers, rates and resource planning; energy efficiency; and Puerto Rico’s electrical system. Kunkel has degrees in physics from Princeton and Cambridge.

The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) examines issues related to energy markets, trends and policies. The institute’s mission is to accelerate the transition to a diverse, sustainable and profitable energy economy. IEEFA receives its funding from global philanthropic organizations and individuals, and is funded by ClimateWorks Foundation, the U.S. Energy Foundation, The Heinz Endowments and other funders.

Virginia Supreme Court to hear appeal of reversal of $2B judgment for Appian

The Supreme Court of Virginia has agreed to hear a petition from software company , asking to reinstate a 2022 judgment worth about $2.04 billion in a against a competitor.

It’s the latest turn in the battle between Appian, which is based in ‘s McLean area, and rival Pegasystems. In 2022, Appian won what was estimated to be the largest award in Virginia state court history after it sued Massachusetts-based Pega and an individual, Youyong Zou, in 2020, alleging that Zou, an employee of a government contractor using Appian software, illegally provided Pega with copies of Appian’s software and documentation. Pega disputed that claim, stating that anything viewed was available to the public. 

Then, a panel of three judges in July 2024 reversed the verdict and ordered a new trial, saying that Appian was improperly relieved of the burden of proving that Pega financially benefited from misappropriating Appian’s secrets.

Now, Appian’s will be heard by the state Supreme Court, the court decided March 7. The court has not yet set a date for a hearing.

In its petition to the Supreme Court, Appian raised four different errors it believes the Court of Appeals made, and the petition was granted on each of the four issues, according to a company news release.

“This was what we consider a pretty serious violation of our trade secrets,” Appian’s general counsel, Christopher Winters, said Tuesday. “This is serious conduct that we … felt strongly that we needed to get addressed by the courts.”

Pega issued a statement maintaining that the appeals court’s decision last year to overturn the jury verdict “was a result of a flawed trial on many fronts, including that we were prevented from showing that our software never adopted any of Appian’s supposed trade secrets.”

“The appellate court’s 60-page decision was unanimous, and we believe Appian will have to overcome numerous, thorough and well-reasoned grounds to overturn the appeals court decision,” Pega added in the statement.

The Virginia Supreme Court also agreed to hear Pega’s cross-appeal issues, which asks the court to review whether the trial court and court of appeals made an error by finding that there was sufficient evidence that Appian “took reasonable efforts to maintain the secrecy of its alleged trade secrets when Appian disclosed that information to others who were under no obligation to keep it secret in holding” and whether Appian failed to sufficiently identify some of its trade secrets.

In its original complaint filed in 2020 with the , Appian claimed that it lost 201 customers and alleged $479 million in “unjust enrichment of Pega” between 2012 and 2020, but Pega’s attorneys argued that the information gained by the company was not actually “trade secrets” because some of it was sourced to publicly available materials, according to the trial transcript.

Appian included Zou, a software architect, in the original lawsuit, and he was ordered to pay Appian $5,000.

Pegasystems was also found liable for computer fraud in violation of the Virginia Computer Crimes Act, but the jury awarded Appian only $1 on that count.

The 2024 appeals court authored by Judge Frank K. Friedman rejected Pega’s claim that “Appian failed to establish misappropriation of any trade secret as a matter of . However, we agree with Pega that the trial court erred in granting [a jury instruction], which relieved Appian of its proper burden to prove causation between the alleged misappropriation and any damages.”

Moreover, the opinion reads, Appian was allowed to use Pega’s total sales during the eight-year period to prove unjust enrichment — but the trial court improperly blocked Pega “from showing that many of Pega’s total sales were in areas in which Appian did not even compete with Pega.”

The trial court also “abused its discretion” by not permitting Pega to attempt to authenticate software evidence during the trial. Instead, the circuit court judge excluded software because it was on “a different laptop than provided in discovery.” Finally, the appeals decision says that the trial court “should refrain from instructing the jury that the number of people with access to Appian’s platform is ‘not relevant.’”

Appian, which CEO and Chairman Matt Calkins co-founded in 1999, employs 2,033 employees, 1,339 of whom were based in the United States at the end of 2024. For fiscal 2024, Appian reported revenue of $617 million, an increase of 13% over the previous year.

Editor’s note: This story has been corrected to clarify Appian’s allegations in the 2020 lawsuit.

Metal fabrication company expanding Virginia headquarters

Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Tuesday that service disabled- and veteran-owned metal company TST Fab & Machine is investing $3 million to expand its existing headquarters, with plans to create 56 .

Headquartered at 1060 W. 27th Street in Norfolk, the company fabricates sheet metal and manufactures machine parts for the Navy. The business is owned and operated by its CEO, retired U.S. Navy Commander Russell S. Turner, and its chief operating officer, Shawn Kuhle.

“This investment is a testament to our thriving sector and the skilled workforce that drives our economy forward,” Youngkin said in a statement. “The sheet metal and machine fabrication industries are vital to modern infrastructure, and this will create jobs, boost innovation, and further establish Virginia as a hub for advanced manufacturing.”

In a statement, TST Fab & Machine President Matt Hemsley said the investment signifies the company’s commitment to the region and reinforces its dedication to supporting the Navy and national .

“I am incredibly proud of our team and grateful for the continued partnership with the Commonwealth of Virginia and the City of Norfolk,” Hemsley said. “Together, we are setting the stage for future growth, innovation and job creation, enhancing our community and strengthening our contributions to America’s industrial and defense sectors.”

TST did not return requests for comment about the expansion.

The company was formed in 2021 through the of an existing shop in Norfolk and a machine shop in Chesapeake. TST specializes in precision on machine shop services, custom sheet metal fabrication, laser cutting, welding and painting. The materials it uses include stainless steel, copper, nickel, bronze, titanium and composites.

The Virginia Partnership partnered with the Hampton Roads Alliance and  Norfolk city government to secure the project for the state.

$120M TowneBank-Village Bank acquisition approved by state, FDIC

Suffolk-based ‘s $120 million acquisition of ‘s Village and Trust Financial Corp. has been approved by the FDIC and the Virginia State Corporation Commission, clearing the way for a completed in early April, the two banks said Tuesday.

Announced in September 2024, the combined bank, which will still be known as TowneBank, will have total assets of approximately $17.8 billion, $14.9 billion in deposits and $12.1 billion in loans, based on financial information reported as of June 30, 2024.

Founded in 1999, TowneBank has more than 50 locations across Central and Eastern Virginia and North Carolina, and it will add ‘s nine branch offices serving the greater Richmond area and Williamsburg. Following the , those locations will operate as “Village Bank, a Division of TowneBank,” until mid-June, when the core systems and operations will be folded into those of TowneBank.

As of Dec. 31, 2024, TowneBank had total assets of $17.25 billion, and it is the second largest bank headquartered in Virginia, with $10.68 billion in deposits as of June 30, 2024.

Randolph-Macon College names next president

Ashland’s has chosen Michael E. Hill as its 16th president, effective Aug. 1, the college announced Tuesday.

Hill is currently president of Chautauqua Institution, a western nonprofit educational institution for children and adults that runs extensive theater, music and other arts programming during its nine-week summer season.

He will succeed Randolph-Macon President Robert R. Lindgren, who is retiring in July after nearly 20 years.

Hill previously led the nonprofit Youth for Understanding USA and served in senior roles at United Cerebral Palsy, Washington National Cathedral and The Washington Ballet. He was also a founding faculty member at George Mason University’s master of arts management program, where he taught in an adjunct role for more than a decade and was named faculty member of the year in 2011, according to RMC’s news release.

He is an alumnus of St. Bonaventure University, where he served on its board of trustees, and received a master’s degree in arts and cultural management from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota and a doctorate in education from Vanderbilt University. Hill also was a visiting lecturer at Georgetown University and serves on the board for the Robert H. Jackson Center and the American Enterprise Institute’s leadership network.

According to RMC, Hill plans to move to with his husband, Peter, and their golden retriever, Wilbur, this summer.

Trump family business sues Capital One for closing accounts in 2021

Just after escaped a federal watchdog lawsuit that was suddenly dropped last month, it’s back in legal hot water, this time courtesy of President Donald Trump’s family business.

On March 7, multiple entities connected with the sued the -based bank for terminating more than 300 Trump Organization bank accounts following the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The complaint, which was filed in a Miami-Dade County, Florida, circuit court by the business’ entities and Eric Trump, executive vice president of and acquisitions for the Trump Organization, claims that Capital One’s decision to close “hundreds of bank accounts” controlled by the business “came about as a result of political and social motivations and Capital One’s unsubstantiated, ‘woke’ beliefs that it needed to distance itself from President Trump and his conservative political views. In essence, Capital One ‘de-banked’ plaintiffs’ accounts because Capital One believed that the political tide at the moment favored doing so.”

The claims that the Trump Organization received correspondence from Capital One on March 8, 2021, that “hundreds of their bank accounts were being closed and their account relationships with Capital One would be terminated by June 7, 2021,” without prior warning. Although Capital One extended the closure of some accounts, the complaint alleges that the bank’s decision caused the business and affiliated entities “to suffer considerable financial harm.” The lawsuit also says that Capital One “failed to provide a reason for terminating plaintiffs’ accounts, [but] plaintiffs have learned that they were de-banked because of President Trump’s political views.”

Capital One said in a statement Monday that it “has not and does not close customer accounts for political reasons.”

The Trump Organization further argues in the suit that the closing of its bank accounts is “representative of a systemic and widespread practice” in the industry in which customers are de-banked for their political views. Although the lawsuit cites an from Republican Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares from April 2024 in which he claimed that Bank of America was de-banking conservatives, it also cites Democratic U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s comments about de-banking’s impact on consumers and businesses — in which the Massachusetts senator said President Trump “was on to a real problem when he criticized Bank of America for its de-banking practices” at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

The Trump lawsuit demands a jury trial and “all available damages” under North Carolina, Nebraska, New Jersey and Minnesota laws.

Meanwhile, this legal action comes at a sensitive time for Capital One, as its parent company, , awaits federal approval of its $35.3 billion acquisition of Discover Financial Services. Although the ‘s completion was expected to occur in February following approval of both companies’ shareholders, Discover said in a Feb. 12 Securities and Exchange Commission filing that its new deadline was extended to May 19.

“Our announced with Discover Financial complies with the Bank Merger Act’s legal requirements, and we remain well-positioned to gain approval,” a Capital One spokesperson said in a statement Monday.

Capital One did benefit from the change in administrations, as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, under Trump, recently dropped a federal lawsuit against the bank and its parent claiming that the companies cheated millions of customers out of more than $2 billion in interest payments. In the final days of the Biden administration, the CFPB sued Capital One, but in the first days of Trump’s second term, CFPB Director Rohit Chopra was fired, and its acting director, Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought, shuttered the agency’s headquarters.

Executive to retire after three decades at S.L. Nusbaum

Frank H. Cowling, Jr. a partner and senior vice president of private asset management at , plans to retire at the end of March after four decades working in , according to a Tuesday announcement by the -based company.

Cowling joined S.L. Nusbaum in 1994 as vice president of shopping center management and became a partner at the firm four years later. For the past 17 years, Cowling has managed a $500 million portfolio of shopping centers and apartments in Richmond and the Hampton Roads area. He plans to remain involved with the company part time.

S.L. Nusbaum was founded in 1906.