Sorry but this makes zero sense. How are they recognising $13...

Sorry but this makes zero sense. How are they recognising $13 million of profit in FY22 for a contract that wasn't even awarded until the following financial year.

Their own accounting policies as per 2021 annual report state that revenue on construction contracts is not recognised until relevant performance milestones have been met. What performance milestones can you meet on a contract that you haven't even been awarded? Tendering costs are an overhead not a project cost. Or was this contract actually awarded before the end of FY22 and the issue is with continuous disclosure?

"Austal notes that, as expected, the incumbent OPC manufacturer has appealed the award of the remaining vessels to Austal. Austal remains optimistic that both the integrity of the solicitation process and the selection of Austal USA as the Stage II OPC shipbuilder will be upheld."

Again, why are they taking up $13 million of profit if they're merely "optimistic" about the contract award? This seems like a recipe for future writebacks and smells of management having an incentive to boost FY22 revenue at the expense of future revenue.