AmyDavid

So...who will get the contracts?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-s...nt-mackay.html

nldfc

I think Seaspan in Vancouver will get the lions share as its more purpose built for the type of contract with Levi's getting the "pity pick" to keep the French Canadians happy - Nova Scotia as per normal will get the right royal shafting

Sometimes Nova Scotia needs to stand up for itself and make a bit of a fuss about things

DandNHill

Oh gosh is the decision tomorrow? People are sooo hoping that Halifax gets it as it will bring business here too and it is really needed. Fingers crossed...

AmyDavid

I really hope for the future of NS that they get at least one of the contracts - but I tend to agree with your views above.

nldfc

I know a lot of the "trades" guys in Nova Scotia from some of the past onshore / offshore projects and would love to see them getting something after the Nova Scotia province and Encana screwed them completely by allowing Deep Panuke to be almost 100% built in Dubai

macadian

Well...the decision will be made on the basis of Political expediency....nothing new there eh?

I would hope that the East and West coast would get them.....but that Quebec will get one of them is a 'given'...even if they could not weld two nails together....

Cynical old me.....

AmyDavid

So very very very happy that I was wrong yesterday! Way to go Nova Scotia!

ultrarunner

May be....seapan has been thrown around as the would be company that will get the lion share, even though the family that owns it is from Montana, and the geezer was recently votes the 48th richest person in the US by Forbes.

Look at it this way.....it doesn't matter who gets what, numerous companies stand to get their teeth on some of the wonga, thru outsourcing of some of the work either thru personnel or materials

But 25 billion dollars to the #1 company though is a lot

iaink

Presumably they will spread it around to some extent, rather than contract only one yard.

$25B is a lot to you or I, but in defence contracts its not that much compared to some...

macadian

Seems my jaded cynicism was misplaced....and best bang for buck out distanced political expediency! East and West coasts get the builds!

Ontario and Quebec will benifit it seems from providing the 'guts' of the builds in the way of ships systems, weapons fits, engineering etc....seems everyone is a winner....

Really pleased for Halifax....great news!

ultrarunner

I was just talking Defence contract specifically...I mean it cost 1 million dollars to rent the Antanov for a 1 way flight to to or from Afg

ultrarunner

If they didn't do that, there will have been lawsuits.....tricky though of them waiting for the markets to close before announcing the news

Novocastrian

Although obviously I can't prove it but that was my prediction in the attached poll. Good for Halifax to be sure, but has anyone bothered to ask why we should be spending such a huge sum on military hardware in the first place?

iaink

No, but there is much chuntering about "Northern Sovereignty", so presumably the bottom line is to protect the mineral rights up in the Arctic that no one in their right minds should be exploiting anyway. Bit like the tar sands oil I expect.


Remind me, who were the major corporate donors to our inglorous leaders election campaign...

No surprise that Quebec was done no favours... I read somewhere that the reform party was partly born of frustration that F18 maintenance contracts were given preferentially to quebec firms over cheaper western tenders? Hopefully the tenders for the navy were decided on merit, not politics and lobbying.

ultrarunner

Ah....conspiracy theories are so not cool anymore