NQEA Australia

NQEA Australia, formerly North Queensland Engineers and Agents, is an engineering and shipbuilding company based in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. The company was created in 1948 as an engineering supply company, then expanded in 1966 into shipbuilding.

NQEA has built several ships for the Royal Australian Navy (including the Fremantle class patrol boats and Leeuwin class survey ships), and was initially contracted to build hull blocks for the Hobart class air warfare destroyer project. However, the Hobart contract was lost to BAE Systems Australia in January 2009, after NQEA indicated that it was having trouble meeting its financial obligations for the project.