The federal Transport Minister, Chrystia Freeland, has expressed strong concern over B.C. Ferries’ decision to award a contract for 4 new passenger vessels to the Chinese state-owned China Merchants Industry Weihai Shipyards. In a letter addressed to British Columbia’s Transportation Minister, Mike Farnworth, Freeland described her reaction as one of “great consternation and disappointment,” noting that the choice carried geopolitical implications and could involve Canadian taxpayer funding.
Freeland remarked that Canada imposes various tariffs on Chinese imports and suggested it was surprising that the procurement process lacked any Canadian content requirements or mandatory involvement of domestic shipbuilders. She requested clarity on whether federal subsidies or loans—for instance, the US$37.8 million annual subsidy or financing from the Canada Infrastructure Bank—are being allocated to this project, and emphasized that she expects assurances that federal contributions will not support the China-built vessels.
In addition to funding concerns, Minister Freeland raised questions about security risks, particularly cybersecurity, and called for confirmation that B.C. Ferries conducted a comprehensive risk assessment in collaboration with Transport Canada and Public Safety Canada.
B.C. Ferries, for its part, has defended the decision, asserting that China Merchants Industry Weihai submitted the most favourable bid following a five-year, thorough procurement process, and noted that no Canadian shipyards had submitted bids. The operator further explained that historically Canadian firms have procured some 100 vessels from Chinese shipyards over the past decade.
In response to the federal scrutiny, B.C. Ferries communications head Jeff Groot detailed several mitigation steps: sensitive IT systems will be sourced in Canada and installed aboard by Canadian personnel; a dedicated B.C. Ferries oversight team will be present during construction; and coordination with Transport Canada and Public Safety Canada has been in place since before and shortly after the contract was finalized.
Premier David Eby has maintained B.C. Ferries’ operational independence, emphasising that Canadian yards did not bid and that constructing the vessels domestically would have increased costs by at least $1 billion and delayed their entry into service.
The Canada Infrastructure Bank has announced a loan package up to $1 billion—$690 million for the vessels and $310 million for electrification infrastructure—to support the order of 4 hybrid-capable ferries, which may transition to fully battery-electric in the future.
This development has provoked debate across Parliament and the B.C. legislature, with critics raising concerns over security, domestic industrial support, and geopolitical implications, while defenders argue that the procurement prioritised capacity, timelines, and cost efficiency.