March 26, 2024 - Quebec, Quebec - Public Services and Procurement Canada

Through the National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS), the Government of Canada is driving economic growth and creating good jobs, while ensuring that the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) has the ships it needs to carry out its important work.

Today, the Honourable Jean-Yves Duclos, Minister of Public Services and Procurement, announced that the Government of Canada has awarded a first NSS contract to Chantier Davie Canada Inc. of Levis, Quebec, for initial work related to the construction of new Program Icebreakers. Under this $19.6-million contract including taxes, Chantier Davie will begin work to develop the initial design.

The new Program Icebreakers will replace the CCG's medium icebreakers that operate in Atlantic Canada and the St. Lawrence waterways during the winter, and in the Arctic during the summer. In Atlantic Canada, these Program Icebreakers will perform icebreaking services, escort ships through ice-covered waters and help clear ice from harbours and wharfs, which is essential to Canada's commercial fisheries. In the Arctic, they will provide icebreaking support to ships, ensuring the safe transport of vital supplies, goods and people in Canadian waters.

The Government of Canada's NSS is a long-term, multi-billion-dollar program focused on renewing the CCG and Royal Canadian Navy (RCN) fleets to ensure Canada's marine agencies have the modern ships they need to fulfill their missions, while revitalizing Canada's marine industry, creating good middle-class jobs, and maximizing economic benefits across the country. This contract is expected to create and sustain approximately 35 jobs annually.