Irving to be Canadian Surface Combatant prime contractor

Canada's Minister of Public Works and Government Services, Diane Finley, seen at an earlier announcement at Halifax Shipyard

JANUARY 23, 2015 — Canada’s Minister of Public Works and Government Services, Diane Finley, and Regional Minister for Nova Scotia, Peter MacKay, are set to announce continued progress on the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy at Irving  Shipbuilding’s Halifax Shipyard this afternoon.

Most of what they will likely say seems to have already seeped out into the Canadian media.
Tuesday, Tom Ring, Assistant Deputy Minister of Acquisitions at Public Works held a closed door industry briefing in Ottawa at which he reportedly disclosed that Irving Shipbuilding, already the designated shipbuilder for the C$26 billion Canadian Surface Combatant project, will now also be the prime contractor.

The media reports say that it was disclosed that up to 15 ships will be built and that designing them will take 10 years and building them will take 20 years.

The disclosures about the Canadian Surface Combatant project come after last week’s media reports that the federal government has now signed a build contract with Irving Shipbuilding for the AOPS (arctic/offshore patrol ships) program and that, as widely expected, the government will get fewer ships than initially projected and will pay more for them.