Military shipbuilding facing fresh delays as a result of COVID-19: procurement chief

OTTAWA —
The Defence Department’s top procurement official is warning of fresh delays in the delivery of already overdue warships and other new equipment to the Canadian Armed Forces because of COVID-19.

Assistant deputy minister of materiel Troy Crosby says the Halifax and Vancouver shipyards building new fleets for Canada’s navy and coast guard have been hit particularly hard by lockdowns and supply chain disruptions.

While the government is working with the shipyards to determine the full extent of the problem, Crosby says their already revised delivery schedules will slip yet again.

Any schedule slippage will delay delivery of much-needed new ships for the navy’s aging fleet, which has seen five vessels retired over the past decade that still haven’t been replaced.

It will also mean even higher costs for the more than 20 navy and coast guard ships currently being built or which have yet to begin, all of which have seen their budgets increase as a result of past delays.

Crosby says other military procurement projects are being affected by the pandemic as well, but that procurement officials are working with the military and industry to manage potential impacts.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 21, 2021.