Canada welds good-luck coin into keel of new Arctic patrol ship named after Yukon glacier

The names of the CCGS Donjek Glacier and the CCGS Sermilik Glacier were announced Wednesday at Halifax's Irving Shipbuilding, where the keel of the Donjek Glacier is already complete.

Halifax Shipyard has unveiled the names of two new Canadian Coast Guard ships being built at the yard.

The CCGS Donjek Glacier and the CCGS Sermilik Glacier will be two of five Arctic and offshore patrol ships being constructed at Irving Shipbuilding as part of the National Shipbuilding Strategy.

The Donjek Glacier is named after a glacier in Kluane National Park in Yukon. Donjek is a Southern Tutchone word meaning "muddy glacier."

The Sermilik Glacier is named for a glacier in Sirmilik National Park in Nunavut. Sermilik is an Inuktitut word meaning "place of glaciers."

The ships will primarily support fisheries enforcement and surveillance missions along Canada's East Coast. They will also be able to assist in search-and-rescue missions and icebreaking operations and strengthen Canada's position in the Arctic.

"We want to ensure that the Canadian Coast Guard has everything they need to protect Canada's marine environment while ensuring our country's sovereignty by maintaining a strong presence in our water, especially in the Arctic," said Dartmouth-Cole Harbour MP Darren Fisher at the unveiling on Wednesday.

The keel of the Donjek Glacier has been completed and construction began in August 2023. The contract for the two ships was announced in May 2019.

The ships will replace two of five similar patrol vessels in the Canadian Coast Guard's fleet.

As of the end of 2023, more than $26.5 billion in total contracts had been awarded under the strategy.

Canada has been putting greater emphasis on Arctic security.

Earlier this month at the NATO summit in Washington, Canada announced a pact with the United States and Finland to build icebreakers for the region.

Russia has 40 icebreakers, with more in production, and China considers itself a "near Arctic power."

Also at the NATO summit, Defence Minister Bill Blair said that Canada is taking the first steps to procure up to 12 conventionally powered, under-ice submarines to replace the aging Victoria-class fleet.

Following the release of the defence policy update in the spring, both Blair and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau indicated it's a matter of when Canada begins buying new submarines — not if.

The Canadian government also confirmed its purchase of a strategically located 21,000-square-foot aircraft hangar in Inuvik, N.W.T., earlier this month for $8.6 million.

The move received praise from northerners and security experts after foreign buyers showed interest in the hangar.

As reported by CBC in June, Canada is in talks with Germany and Norway for a trilateral security pact focused on the North Atlantic and Arctic waters. As part of these talks, Canada has been invited to join a submarine procurement program involving the two other friendly nations.

The German-Norwegian partnership is expected to begin delivering boats in 2026, but that date remains in flux.

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