Information about the graving dock

About the graving dock

The Esquimalt Graving Dock is located in the municipality of Esquimalt, British Columbia, adjacent to the provincial capital, Victoria. The dock is close to the port cities of Vancouver, British Columbia, and Seattle, Washington, and is about 1,200 kilometres (750 miles) north of San Francisco.

The dock was built on the traditional territories of the Songhees and Esquimalt First Nations. Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC) protects and respects the areas of archaeological significance on the property, and works with both nations to ensure protocols are followed when disturbing the soil on the property.

Address: Esquimalt Graving Dock
825 Admirals Road
Victoria BC V9A 2P1
Locate Esquimalt Graving Dock on a map

Strategic marine infrastructure

The Esquimalt Graving Dock is a critical asset supporting the Royal Canadian Navy and Canadian Coast Guard fleets on the West Coast. As an open-access, multi-user secure facility, it also supports and strengthens the region’s industrial marine sector by providing world-class ship repair, refit and maintenance capabilities. Independent studies show that ship repair infrastructure on the West Coast is limited, with demand for the graving dock expected to exceed capacity by 2023. The dock must also be prepared to support future federal vessels built under the National Shipbuilding Strategy.

As part of regular site management, we periodically review the rates to ensure fairness and financial sustainability.

Respecting traditional Indigenous lands

The Esquimalt Graving Dock is located in the municipality of Esquimalt, British Columbia, adjacent to the provincial capital of Victoria and within the traditional Coastal Salish territories of the Esquimalt and Songhees First Nations.

Video: Esquimalt Graving Dock

Transcript of the Esquimalt Graving Dock video

(Start of clip)

Text on screen: Esquimalt Graving Dock

(The screen shows a transitional aerial view of the shipbuilding facility captured by a drone.)

(The next sequence shows a crane with the Canada wordmark located right beside the emptied dry dock.)

(After doing a 360-degree rotation around the crane, the camera transitions to the rear part of the dock facility and shows different types of vehicles circulating on the site.)

(The camera then shows a panorama of the Esquimalt Graving Dock from the waterside, in which we see two cranes located beside the dock as well as a BC Ferries ship located in one of the dry dock spaces. Vehicles are also circulating in the facility.)

(The camera then moves in front of the BC Ferries ship, located in the front of the dock right beside a crane, and captures some aerial footage of the ship in the dry dock space.)

(The next sequence shows the infrastructure located in the back of the facility and transitions to the front of the dock, where some footage of the dock operations was captured looking west of the facility.)

(The camera zooms in on the back of the Esquimalt Graving Dock and highlights the infrastructure located in the east end of the facility.)

(Still showing the infrastructure located in the east end of the dock, the camera transitions to the north side of the facility to give a panoramic view of the dock with the water in the background.)

(Two very quick transitions to show a crane with the water in the background and a view of the facility from the north end with the water in the background.)

(The camera then shows an aerial view of the dock and the BC Ferries ship with the water in the background.)

(The camera transitions to zoom in on the BC Ferries ship.)

(The next sequence shows an empty dry dock space in the back end of the dock, with two cranes and a residential sector in the background.)

(The camera continues its 360-degree rotation to show the dock facility looking east.)

(The camera zooms in on the BC Ferries ship.)

(The camera zooms in on the back of the dock, giving a view of the west end of the facility with the water in the background. The camera continues to rotate to show the west end of the facility with the water and a residential sector in the background.)

Text on screen: Esquimalt Graving Dock 825 Admirals Rd, Esquimalt, BC

(The camera moves to give a final panoramic shot of the entire Esquimalt Graving Dock looking from the water.)

(Public Services and Procurement Canada departmental signature)

(Canada wordmark)

(End of clip)

Previous projects

The Esquimalt Graving Dock was built almost 100 years ago. A lot of the legacy and underground infrastructure is in need of repair or replacement.

Over the last 4 years, PSPC has invested in the dock for numerous projects related to:

health and safety
infrastructure continuity
site remediation

Discover more about the projects completed over the last few years.

Soil remediation at former Canadian Forces Sailing Association uplands (completed February 2024)

Type of project: Remediation
Project description: During this project, 3 areas with higher contamination were excavated, and the soil was transported and disposed of off site at a licensed facility. The excavated sites were then backfilled with clean material, compacted and paved.
Construction firm: Tender awarded to Milestone Environmental Contracting Inc. (December 5, 2023)
Value: Over $240,000
Project status: Completed on February 27, 2024

Repair and extension of graving dock’s east end (completed May 2023)

Type of project

Repair and extension

Project description

The eastern end of the dry dock was repaired and extended by 36 metres. It was 357 metres long, and the extension added about 20% capacity to the Esquimalt Graving Dock, allowing the graving dock to increase its capacity to lodge vessels up to 150 metres long.

This extension was a critical step in the short-term expansion of the graving dock’s capacity to reduce sustainment costs for Canada’s West Coast fleets and increase revenues for PSPC.

Construction firm

Tender awarded to Pomerleau Inc. (July 15, 2021)

Value

About $47 million

Project status

Completed May 2023

Remediation at former Canadian Forces Sailing Association waterlot (completed March 2023)

Type of project: Remediation
Project description: During this project, marina structures were removed; about 17,000 cubic metres of contaminated sediments were dredged, processed, transported and disposed of; and clean sand was placed.
Construction firm: Tender awarded to QM Environmental & PPM Civil Constructors (QM/PPMCC), in joint venture (September 28, 2022)
Value: Over $13 million
Project status: Completed on March 15, 2023

Replacement of north landing wharf substation (completed February 2021)

Project description: Replacement of the obsolete electrical substation on the North Landing Wharf with new electrical distribution to dockside kiosks
Construction firm: Tender awarded to CYMI Canada Inc. (December 20, 2018)
Value: $18.74 million
Project status: Completed February 2021

Caisson mid-life refurbishment (completed February 2021)

Project description

Mid-life refurbishment of the 2 caissons, with modernized electrical, mechanical systems and new perimeter seals and protective coating

Construction firms

Tender awarded to Esquimalt Drydock Company Ltd (June 21, 2019)
and Point Hope Maritime

Value

$9.65 million

Project status

Completed February 2021

Replacement of main (north) substation (completed 2020)

Project description: Replacement of the main (north) substation with a new code-compliant one and electrical safety update
Construction firm: Tender awarded to Scansa Construction Ltd. (December 5, 2017)
Value: $15.8 million
Project status: Completed 2020

Replacement of south jetty (completed 2020)

Project description

Replacement of the aged jetty removed due to deteriorating wooden piles and the need to remediate the under-pier waterlot.

The project restored 9,600 square metres of surface and about 350 metres of wet berthage, providing full-service kiosks along the perimeter.

Construction firms

Tender awarded to Fraser River Pile & Dredge (GP) Inc. (March 29, 2018)
and SPAL General Contractors
(joint-venture under Procurement Strategy for Aboriginal Business)

Value

$45.8 million

Project status

Completed 2020

History of the dock

The Esquimalt Graving Dock was built from 1921 to 1926 to meet the increasing demands of the shipping industry in Canada. A smaller dry dock had been built across the Esquimalt harbour in 1887, but was increasingly unable to accommodate commercial vessels, which were becoming larger each year, and a new facility was needed.

Skinner's Cove in Esquimalt Harbour was deemed an "eminently suitable" site by The Journal of ME Engineering Institute of Canada and, in early 1921, the Government of Canada began construction of the Esquimalt Graving Dock there. The dock opened for business in 1926, welcoming its first ship, The Reginolite, on September 13 of that year.