(LEVIS, Quebec) — Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Monday announced the largest shipbuilding contract in Quebec’s history. 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. This historic investment grows Canada’s domestic shipbuilding industry, strengthens its ability to keep critical trade routes open, and reinforces its strategic autonomy.
All six icebreakers will be built in Canada at the Davie Shipyard in Levis, Quebec, creating nearly 5,000 jobs in the construction phase alone and contributing nearly $650 million annually to Canada’s gross domestic product. Under the government’s Buy Canadian Policy, these vessels will be built with Canadian steel and other domestic materials, while maximizing 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 the 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 their 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.
Canada’s new government is laser-focused on building a stronger, more independent, more resilient Canadian economy that drives prosperity for all. This is the economic strategy at work. Canada is expanding the Port of Montreal at Contrecœur and the Port of Quebec to move more Canadian products to global markets. And it is using major federal procurement, from armored vehicles to submarines and icebreakers, to build Canadian industrial capacity, strengthen domestic supply chains, and create high-paying careers here at home.
“Canada is now the best-connected economy in the world. Canada is building such unparalleled market access because we are trusted, reliable, and have what the world wants,” Carney said. “These six state-of-the-art icebreakers will keep the trade routes that carry Canadian goods to the world accessible and secure. Built in Levis by Canadian workers, they are a lasting investment in a stronger, more self-reliant Canada.”
Quick facts
• Chantier Davie plays a critical role in supporting Canada’s fleets, building, repairing, and maintaining ships for the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) and the Royal Canadian Navy through more than $7.74 billion in contracts since 2012.
• As Polar Class 3 icebreakers, the program icebreakers will be designed as modern, versatile vessels capable of carrying a wide range of missions in challenging ice conditions across Canada’s waterways. They will form the next generation of Arctic capable ships, supporting growing operational demands in the north, from search and rescue and environmental response, to northern resupply and Arctic science missions.
• In 2019, the government of Canada announced it would be procuring six new program icebreakers under the National Shipbuilding Strategy, as part of the CCG fleet renewal.
• In 2024, the government awarded Chantier Davie a $19.6 million contract to begin initial design work for six new program icebreakers for the CCG.
• In 2025, the government of Canada awarded a $3.25 billion contract (before tax) to Chantier Davie for the construction of Polar Max, which will be one of the most powerful and capable heavy icebreakers in the world.
• In 2024, the government of Canada signed the Icebreaker Collaboration Effort Pact with the United States and Finland to strengthen cooperation on the design, construction, and maintenance of Arctic and polar icebreakers, including through information sharing, workforce development, and joint research and development.
– Prime Minister of Canada Mark Carney
