ASC not for sale at this stage: Cormann

Finance Minister Mathias Cormann says the government is not currently pursuing a commission of audit recommendation to sell its defence shipbuilding agency.

The audit released earlier this month recommended the government privatise ASC Pty Ltd, saying that the government ownership of a manufacturer is an anomaly.

Senator Cormann told a Senate estimates hearing on Wednesday that the government had noted the recommendation but obviously not acted on it in the budget released two weeks ago.

"We have not had conversations with the ASC in relation to that recommendation because the government is not progressing it at this stage," Senator Cormann said.

He said the government had its hands full making sure its $8.5 billion air warfare destroyer (AWD) project was put on a more sustainable trajectory.