Federal Fisheries Minister Dominic LeBlanc took part in a keel laying for the second of Ottawa’s offshore fisheries vessels during a tour of Seaspan Shipyards on Thursday.
LeBlanc, whose ministry will eventually deploy the Coast Guard vessels under construction, stopped by the shipyard to see first-hand the work progressing on the John Franklin, the first of the Coast Guard ships, along with two other fisheries vessels under construction.
Work on the first ship is about 65 per cent complete. The project passed a milestone at the beginning of February as the superstructure containing the bridge was joined to the rest of the ship. Seaspan and government officials hope to see the ship in the water by the fall.
Blocks that will form the second ship are currently being assembled in the shipyard. Work on the third Coast Guard vessel also began earlier this month. The budget for construction of the three ships is $514 million.
Seaspan’s workforce has ramped up as the federal shipbuilding program progresses. There are now 750 tradespeople working at Vancouver Shipyards, along with 57 apprentices, 390 office staff and 136 subcontractors’ employees.
