On Monday, federal Minister of Public Services and Procurement Jean-Yves Duclos announced that his department has filed a request for information with the global shipbuilding industry for the acquisition of a fleet of up to 12 vessels. Interested parties have until November 18, 2024 to come forward.
However, between Monday’s announcement and the day the contract is signed, a lot of water will flow under the bridge. “To avoid any gaps in Canadian submarine capabilities, Canada plans to award a contract by 2028 and deliver the first replacement submarine no later than 2035,” reads the statement from Public Services and Procurement Canada.
The same applies to the designation of the place or places where the various maintenance centres for the fleet of new submarines will be built.
Naval Québec’s representations do not focus on a single location. “That’s really important to emphasize. Quebec has everything it needs to host a maintenance center,” declared Sun Mr. André Y. Komlosy, Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of Naval Québec.
“After that, the location… There will be criteria in terms of capacity or geographic location. The first element that is important is that Quebec can express its interest,” he added during an interview on the sidelines of the third annual Naval Quebec Conference.
The first reflex would be to think of the Chantier Davie site in Lévis. In addition to Quebec’s favorable geographic location, the supplier association emphasizes other assets that the province has for the establishment of a submarine maintenance center. It specifies that Quebec also has world-renowned naval expertise, a developed maritime infrastructure, as well as a strong industrial ecosystem.
Mr. Komlosy insists that the establishment of the eastern maintenance centre in Quebec will only have beneficial effects.
“When you look at history, when [Brian] Mulroney had decided to open a maintenance centre for the CF-18s in Quebec, we have reaped the benefits of this decision,” he says. “We will probably have one for the F-35s and that is an accelerator for the supply chain.”
— Mr. André Y. Komlosy, Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of Naval Québec
He specifies that the construction of submarines as such can go outside. “But the opportunities for us are maintenance. Will there be two or three maintenance centers? It will depend on what is going to be purchased. And often, this kind of decision is political,” he says. “We think that the timing is good, especially with the announcement we had yesterday. It’s time to show interest.”
Interest of Quebec
The chairman of the board of Naval Québec insists that we must present a united front to show that Quebec has what it takes. “We want to be sure that we will be considered. The Quebec government is definitely very interested in getting involved. There will surely be discussions to that effect eventually,” concludes Mr. Komlosy. “But it is not a decision that is within its jurisdiction. The final decision comes from the federal government.”
Carl Viel, CEO of Québec International, agrees with Naval Québec. “We must not miss the boat on this issue,” he told the Sun Tuesday. “We have everything to gain as a region!”
From left to right: Pierre Drapeau, CEO of Naval Québec; Gaston Côté, retired Brigadier General and Vice-President of International Operations at Groupe DA; Francis Fontaine, CEO of Groupe Bronswerk; Gilles Couturier, retired Rear Admiral and Chief Operating Officer at Levio; and Me André Y. Komlosy, Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors of Naval Québec. (Paul-Robert Raymond/Le Soleil)
More than one location in Canada
Protecting Canadian sovereignty presents challenges, particularly in the Arctic and the Pacific. It is a safe bet that Western Canada will have a naval maintenance centre.
Three naval stakeholders responded that it would be difficult to limit ourselves to just one centre. “Will it be on the East Coast in Halifax or here in Quebec City?” [à Lévis]” asks Gilles Couturier, retired rear admiral and head of operations at Levio.
“The shipyard with the largest capacity is here in Lévis,” he replies. “Even if our friends in the East wanted to build a dry dock to maintain submarines, in Halifax, they already have a big challenge. They’ve already been forced to request an expropriation.”
Mr. Couturier adds that the scenario that could emerge would be the assignment of two submarines in the North, two in the West and two in the East. He also says that submarine builders wanting to qualify will have to form alliances with Canadian companies and that we must focus on the importance of maintenance.
“You don’t buy this for two years or 20 years. It’s at least for 30 years… For two years in operation, a submarine requires the equivalent of three years of maintenance.”
— Gilles Couturier, retired rear admiral and head of operations at Levio
“Sometimes, it can be scary, but more than 60% of the budget for acquiring vessels, such as a submarine, goes towards maintenance for about thirty years, before a reconditioning…” explains Francis Fontaine, CEO of Groupe Bronswerk, a company in the Montreal region, involved in several of Canada’s allied countries. “No matter where the maintenance center is installed, a whole ecosystem will be created around it. That’s the accelerator for the supply chain.”
“Like the CF-18 maintenance centre in Montreal. It helped Bombardier a lot,” adds Gaston Côté, retired brigadier general and vice-president of international operations at Groupe DA, making the parallel mentioned earlier by Mr. Komlosy.
Support for underwater drones
Naval Québec has also positioned itself on the possibility of manufacturing underwater drones to monitor the Canadian Arctic. The association is campaigning for the federal government to create a centre of expertise in Arctic surveillance, based in Quebec.
“We are convinced that Quebec has the potential to become a world leader in autonomous maritime surveillance,” declared Naval Quebec CEO Pierre Drapeau.
