December 19, 2019
Lévis, Canada – On Thursday December 19 2019: Canada’s largest and highest capacity shipbuilder is proud to partner with the Government of Canada to build a new fleet of large ships as part of the National Shipbuilding Strategy.
Alex Vicefield, Chairman of Davie Shipbuilding commented, “Today’s historic announcement marks the beginning of a multi-generational program which will span the next three decades and sustain Davie’s position as a global leader in the delivery of specialist, mission-critical ships.”
Mr. Vicefield added, “as the Arctic becomes of increasing global importance, creating a centre of excellence for the construction of icebreakers – a highly exportable product – will be of significant economic benefit to the Canadian economy in the years to come. We thank the Prime Minister and his government for delivering on their commitment to refresh the shipbuilding strategy and confirming Davie as a key strategic partner.”
James Davies, President and CEO of Davie Shipbuilding added, “We have spent the past decade creating a cutting-edge shipbuilder that has delivered some of the most complex ships ever built in North America. Heading into the next decade as a partner in the National Shipbuilding Strategy means we will be leveraging those skills and experience and applying our unique capacity and infrastructure to renew the federal fleet in a cost-effective and timely manner.”
Mr. Davies added, “this will be the single largest shipbuilding program in Québec since World War II and will ensure the continuity of employment at Davie as well as the development of Québec’s maritime cluster, a major driver for the province’s economy. We now look forward to getting the over 1000 workers who were laid off in 2017 back to work as soon as possible.”
