Government of Canada marks the delivery of the Canadian Coast Guard Ship Sir John Franklin, the first new large vessel built under the National Shipbuilding Strategy

From: Canadian Coast Guard

News release

June 27, 2019

Sidney, BC — The Government of Canada is committed to building up the capacity of the Canadian Coast Guard with improved and new equipment, clearer authorities, and additional resources to keep our waters open, and to support marine science so that we have a better understanding of our ocean environment. Best supporting our Coast Guard and the critical work these women and men do every day, are key components of our government’s world leading Oceans Protection Plan, our comprehensive marine safety system, and our commitment to advancing ocean science.

From coast to coast to coast, we are reinvesting and strengthening Canada’s on-water presence and better protecting our coasts, and waterways.

Today, the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson and the Minister of Public Service and Procurement and Accessibility, the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, announced that we are following through on our commitment to oceans protection with the  acceptance and delivery of the first new large vessel built for the Coast Guard under the National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS).

Built in Canada, for Canadians, the first Offshore Fisheries Science Vessel, CCGS Sir John Franklin, has now joined the Canadian Coast Guard fleet. Based out of the Institute of Ocean Sciences on Patricia Bay, British Columbia, this state-of-the-art ship will ensure that Fisheries and Oceans scientists are working with the best equipment to conduct their vital work on marine science to collect more data on our marine ecosystem. The addition of this vessel to the fleet will help us better understand the impacts of climate change here in Canada, and inform our development of evidence-based policy. The vessel will also support strong environmental response and search and rescue operations, when needed.

As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stated recently in the historic announcement of 18 new ships for the Canadian Coast Guard, the Government of Canada is revitalizing our national shipbuilding industry, creating good middle-class jobs. Through our government’s commitment to building up the fleet, we are ensuring that the women and men of the Coast Guard are operating with modern ships and the necessary tools and technology they need to fulfill their missions.

Hundreds of good quality jobs were created at Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards for the construction of the CCGS Sir John Franklin. This vessel is the first of three Offshore Fisheries Science Vessels being built in Vancouver.  The government’s historic investment to build up the Canadian Coast Guard means that businesses and contractors in British Columbia and across the country are benefitting from the significant economic spinoff of a reinvigorated shipbuilding industry in this country.

The NSS is building modern ships for a strengthened Canadian Coast Guard dedicated to making our waters safer, cleaner and healthier for all Canadians. This Offshore Fisheries Science Vessel, the CCGS Sir John Franklin, is the first of many more new large vessels that will be added to our Coast Guard as we look forward to welcoming many more Canadian-made vessels.

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Quotes

“ On behalf of the Canadian Coast Guard, I am proud to accept the first Offshore Fisheries Science Vessels built and delivered under the National Shipbuilding Strategy. The CCGS Sir John Franklin is a major addition to our Coast Guard fleet. It means that our Fisheries and Oceans scientists, and that the women and men of the Coast Guard have the right tools and technology they need to continue delivering on their essential, collaborative work on the West Coast. The Sir John Franklin, built right here in B.C., is leading the way for many more Canadian built ships to join our Coast Guard fleet, and help keep our oceans safer, cleaner and healthier.”

The Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard

“Today marks a significant milestone, as our government welcomes the first new large ship built and delivered under the National Shipbuilding Strategy, the CCGS Sir John Franklin. This new Offshore Fisheries Science Vessel joins the Canadian Coast Guard fleet, giving our women and men in uniform a modern, world-class ship to carry out their important work. We are delivering on our commitment to renew Canada’s federal fleet and rebuild our domestic shipbuilding industry while providing economic benefits to Canadians from coast to coast to coast.”

The Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Public Services and Procurement and Accessibility

“Seaspan Shipyards is proud to celebrate the delivery and acceptance of the first vessel designed and built under the NSS. This remarkable achievement is the result of the hard work and dedication of hundreds of talented Seaspan employees and supply chain partners from across Canada. When you build ships, you build more than ships. We are building an industry, we are building careers and we are building a vital sovereign capability to design construct and sustain state of the art vessels that fully meet the operational requirements of the women and men of the Canadian Coast Guard and Royal Canadian Navy.”

Mark Lamarre, Chief Executive Officer, Seaspan Shipyards

Quick facts

  • The CCGS Sir John Franklin, was launched in December 2017. Its home port will be at the Institute of Ocean Sciences on Patricia Bay, British Columbia. It includes four science labs: a wet lab, a dry lab, an ocean lab and a control lab, to support scientific research.

  • The Offshore Fisheries Science Vessels (OFSV) are the first class of ships to be built by Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards, as part of the non-combat package under the National Shipbuilding Strategy.

  • The new OFSVs will replace existing Coast Guard ships on the east and west coasts of Canada that provide a platform from which critical scientific research can be performed.

  • The new vessels will support scientific research through work such as:

    • performing fishing and acoustic surveys of fish and invertebrates
    • collecting information on the abundance and distribution of marine species
    • collecting data on marine ecosystems and the impacts of human activity on fisheries resources and ecosystem health

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Contacts

Jocelyn Lubczuk
Press Secretary  
Office of the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans
and the Canadian Coast Guard
343-548-7863
Jocelyn.lubczuk@dfo-mpo.gc.ca


Media Relations
Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard
613-990-7537
Media.xncr@dfo-mpo.gc.ca

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