N.L. shipyards potential winners in navy ship contract

Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada could be the big winner in Ottawa’s $1.8 billion plan to replace the navy’s aging supply ships, as two of the four consortiums bidding on the project plan to utilize shipyards in that province.

Canadian North Atlantic Marine Partnerships and BAE Systems Inc. both say they intend to build the three 28,000-tonne ships in the province, if they are the successful bidders.

A third consortium, headed by General Dynamics Canada Inc., said it would place the work at the Davie Marine shipyard in Quebec. The final bidder, SNC Lavalin ProFac, has said its proposal would see the ships constructed in Victoria.

The ships, which are expected to enter service in 2012, have been on the drawing board for almost 11 years and the federal government announced in last spring’s budget that it was moving forward with replacements for HMCS Preserver and HMCS Protecteur.