Shipyards to share $7B in navy ship contracts
The federal government said Thursday it plans to award contracts worth $7 billion to three shipyards for maintenance and repair work on Royal Canadian Navy frigates - a decision one defence analyst says hearkens back to a historic approach to shipbuilding in Canada.
Public Services and Procurement Canada announced the advance contract award notices to Halifax’s Irving Shipbuilding Inc., Seaspan Victoria Shipyards in Victoria, B.C. and Davie Shipbuilding in Levis, Que.
The contracts are to maintain Canada’s 12 Halifax-class frigates until the end of their operational life, estimated at another 20 years.
The government said in a statement that after consultations, it was decided the infrastructure and workforce of the three Canadian shipyards were needed to work on the frigates.
It was not immediately clear how the money would be divided among the three locations.
Dave Baker-Mosher, president of the Unifor Marine Workers Federation Local 1 union at Halifax’s Irving shipyard, called the government’s plans “devastating.”
“It’s disappointing that our government cannot understand how these ships are worked on and how much skill is needed,” he said.
Baker-Mosher warned that the decision will mean layoffs, and that those highly skilled younger workers handed pink slips may not return.
In B.C., Tim Page with Seaspan
said the company was pleased with the government’s intent to contract the Victoria shipyard.
“We have been repairing and refitting those vessels now for some time on budget and on time and that elicits great pride in our workforce in Victoria,” said Page, Seaspan’s vice-president of government relations.
However, he pointed out that “it’s not the end of the road” just yet, as there is a 15-day “cure period.”
The deal gives other interested suppliers 15 days to come forward if they wish to bid on the contract and submit a statement of capabilities that meets the requirements laid out in the contract notice.