N.L. wants to build its own ships again. Here’s how that could work

Marystown is, in my view, one of the best options in this province, if not the only one. Paul Antle is owner of the former Marystown Shipyard. The yard hasn't built a ship in decades, and there's very little activity at the site. But Antle likes what he's hearing as the governing PCs attempts to relaunch a shipbuilding industry. If we can build our own vessels and put them into our fleet, Here locally and invest our money in our own people, our own plant, our own economy. I would prefer to do that than to just buy them and send our money overseas. And the owner of Harbour Grace Ocean Industries is also keen to play a role as the province looks to build replacement ferries. Expansion plans are already on the drawing board for the Conception Bay dockyard. We already have a strong capability and we're also prepared to invest and to grow and meet new challenges. We're interested to engage with the consultant that's been hired and to have those discussions in the coming weeks. Let's do that work right here in Newfoundland and Labrador. Then PC leader Tony Wakeham made the shipbuilding campaign pledge last year. Now his government has hired a consulting company to study the possibilities, with a report due next spring. This shipyard owner says he plans to engage with the consultant. If you're going to build two vessels, It probably doesn't justify the amount of capital investment required in order to make that happen. But if there's a longer pipeline, if there's other opportunities, not only within Newfoundland and Labrador, but also other parts of Canada that we can supply. Then that's a whole different ballpark. Antle says he will also sell the Marystown Yard if the right buyer comes along. It's entrepreneurs like myself who would be prepared to take the risk and understand the business to be able to jump in and support it. The government is eyeing sites like Bull Arm in Trinity Bay, the St. John's Dockyard, and yards in Marystown and Harbour Grace. There's been talk for years about renewing the province's aging ferry fleet. It won't be cheap. And it won't happen quickly. What's not yet known is if workers in this province will make it happen. Terry Roberts, CBC News, St. John's.