Canada’s Irving Shipbuilding invests in innovation with COVE contract

Canada’s Irving Shipbuilding is investing in marine innovation and commercialization in Nova Scotia and across Canada.

The company announced on Thursday it is funding $4.52 million in the newly established Centre for Ocean Ventures and Entrepreneurship (COVE), an ocean innovation centre to be located on the waterfront in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

At COVE, ocean science research, start-ups, R&D-intensive companies, industry, and Nova Scotia post-secondary institutions will work together to create a cluster of marine innovation and commercialization, and become global leaders.

Irving Shipbuilding’s funding is part of its value proposition commitments under the National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS) – Canada’s 30-year plan to renew the fleets of the Royal Canadian Navy and the Canadian Coast Guard. The funding will support the establishment of various operations and programs at COVE.

COVE, operated by the Institute for Ocean Research Enterprise (IORE), is in the early stages of transforming a former Canadian Coast Guard facility on the Halifax Harbour into extensive marine facilities with two large, deep-water piers, office space, a start-up incubator and space for shops and labs.

The federal and provincial governments are also supporting the establishment of COVE. In September 2016, the government of Canada committed $7.17 million and the Province of Nova Scotia committed $12.55 million to support the refurbishment of the site and development of facilities at COVE.

In 2011, Irving Shipbuilding was selected by the Government of Canada to construct Canada’s future naval combatant fleet and committed to investing 0.5% of its contract revenues in creating a sustainable marine industry across Canada. This will amount to approximately $12.5M over the construction of Arctic and Offshore Patrol Ships (AOPS), the first class of vessel under construction at Irving Shipbuilding’s Halifax Shipyard as part of the National Shipbuilding Strategy.