PORTLAND (AP) – The Navy will overhaul a nuclear submarine this summer at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine and New Hampshire’s congressional delegates announced Wednesday.

The $120 million project was put on hold last month when the Navy said it did not have the moneyto complete the renovation of the USS Montpelier.

Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., said the announcement was a major win for the shipyard.

“This is very positive news for the region and especially for the shipyard and all the people who work there,” he said in a written statement.

The overhaul, scheduled to begin in June, is important to the future of the shipyard, the states’ eight representatives in Washington said in a joint statement.

“We are pleased that the Navy recognizes how important this work is to the shipyard and that its workers are the best for the job,” they wrote.

The shipyard sits on an island in the Piscataqua River that separates New Hampshire and Maine. It employs about 4,000 people from the two states and Massachusetts.

The delegates also said the work will help the shipyard as Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld draws up a list of military bases he will recommend for closure in 2005.

Rumsfeld has said he believes the military has about 20 percent to 25 percent excess capacity at its bases.

He has said he plans to close up to a quarter of the nation’s 425 bases in 2005 to cut costs.

“This funding for the USS Montpelier underscores the Navy’s commitment to the value of ensuring a steady workload at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard,” Sen. John Sununu, R-N.H., said in a statement.