The Government of Canada will invest more than $11 billion to build six new program icebreakers for the Canadian Coast Guard in partnership with Chantier Davie Canada Inc. This historic investment grows Canada’s domestic shipbuilding industry, strengthens our ability to keep critical trade routes open, and reinforces our strategic autonomy.
All six icebreakers will be built in Canada at the Davie Shipyard in Lévis, Québec, creating nearly 5,000 good jobs in the construction phase alone and contributing nearly $650 million annually to Canada’s GDP. Under the government’s Buy Canadian Policy, these vessels will be built with Canadian steel and other domestic materials, while maximising opportunities for Canadian manufacturers, suppliers, and small and medium-sized businesses.
The program icebreakers will replace the Coast Guard’s aging heavy and medium icebreakers – the ships that work Atlantic Canada and the St. Lawrence through the depth of winter, and the Arctic through the summer season. They cut open our most vital sea lanes, answer the call of ships in distress, and come to the aid of vessels trapped in the ice.
This investment will equip the women and men of the Canadian Coast Guard – the civilian service Canadians count on to keep our waters safe – with the modern ships they need to answer the call, from search and rescue to environmental response, for decades to come. Additionally, it secures Canada’s position as the home of NATO’s largest icebreaking fleet, bolsters national security in the North, and protects Canadian interests. Construction will begin in 2027, this first ship will be ready five years later, and the full fleet will be in service by 2038.
CBC: PM Carney unveils $11B in funding to make 6 icebreakers in Quebec