General Dynamics contracted for support of the USS Mesa Verde

Dec. 27 (UPI) -- General Dynamics has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Navy to support the USS Mesa Verde, a San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock.

The contract, announced Tuesday by the Department of Defense, is worth more than $83 million under a firm-fixed-price agreement, meaning the total contract price will not be adjusted if potential overrun costs are accumulated by General Dynamics.

Additionally, the contract includes options that could potentially bring its total value to more than $98.2 million if exercised.

The USS Mesa Verde is set to undergo fiscal 2018 docking phase maintenance, which means the ship's equipment and electronic systems will be repaired or altered during availability.

According to the Pentagon, work on the USS Mesa Verde will have "long-term availability" for "a combination of maintenance, modernization, and repair."

Work on the contract will occur in Norfolk, Va., and is expected to be completed by May 2019.

More than $83 million from U.S. Navy fiscal 2018 operations and maintenance funds, coupled with other procurement funding, has been obligated to General Dynamics with the awarding of the contract. More than $77.5 million from the Navy's operations and maintenance fiscal 2018 funds will expire at the end of the current fiscal year.