The Pentagon reported that US spending for the military operations in Libya has reached $550 million so far but is expected to stabilize at $40 million per month as soon as US forces are lessened and NATO assumes full command.

The US Department of Defense bared that 60 percent of the spending were allocated for missiles and bombs, while the remaining were used for troop transport to the region and combat operations. Admiral James Stavridis, Commander of NATO’s Supreme Allied, Europe, and US European Command, revealed to US senators in a hearing that the operations has already cost hundreds of millions of dollars.

In the same hearing, Navy Commander Kathleen Kesler, spokeswoman for the Pentagon, said it would be difficult to project future expenses, but said that they expect spending an additional $40 million in the next three weeks when the US reduces its troops in the region with NATO assuming command of the operation. Kesler added that the spending does not include the cost of the F-15 fighter plane that crashed over Libya as a result of mechanical failure.

Byron Callan, a defense analyst at Capital Alpha Partners, revealed that the current military efforts in Libya will not have a material impact on US defense stocks, particularly since airplanes have been deployed at based in Italy, cutting down in-flight refueling needs.

Moreover, Callan said that the military efforts in Libya would not interfere with Pentagon spending for procurement or research and development. He also does not expect the military action to generate enough replacement orders for equipment and have US defense company earnings.

Lexington Institute defense analyst Loren Thompson projects that the actual spending was much higher, after considering the cost of maintaining troops that could be deployed right away. In a blog written at the website of Forbes.com, he revealed that what was projected as an inexpensive military efforts in Libya is actually worth $2 million daily of taxpayer’s money, as this is what is needed to keep a force that can be dispatched on short notice.

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