Building ferries in British Columbia could give the province’s economy greater resilience as it faces mounting economic pressure from U.S. tariffs, according to a new report from the Centre of Future Work.
The report argues that having ferries constructed in B.C. shipyards, rather than ordering them from foreign yards, could provide a significant boost to both the provincial and Canadian economies at a time when trade relations with the United States remain strained.
The study was commissioned by a coalition of unions and industry leaders. It comes 15 months after BC Ferries announced that it had awarded a contract to a shipyard owned by the Chinese government to construct four major vessels, although the final cost of that contract has not yet been disclosed.
At the time, BC Ferries said no Canadian company had submitted a proposal for the project. The winning bid from China Merchants Weihai Shipyards was also at least $1 billion lower than competing bids.
The decision, however, triggered strong criticism.
Jim Stafford, a labour economist and co-author of the new report, says the province should not repeat that approach, particularly as B.C. confronts tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
Stafford stresses that the report is not intended to reopen the debate over BC Ferries’ decision to purchase vessels from China. Instead, its focus is on the broader economic opportunity that could come from rebuilding B.C.’s shipbuilding capacity.
According to the report, that would require domestic procurement guarantees, along with investments in shipyard facilities and the skilled workforce needed to support the industry.
Eric McNeely, president of the union representing ferry workers and a member of the Build Them Here coalition, says B.C. needs to align its procurement decisions with its own calls for consumers and organizations to buy locally as the province responds to U.S. tariffs.
“If buying local matters, when I go to the grocery store, it has to matter, when BC Ferries is spending billions of dollars, including taxpayers’ dollars, on vessels,” he says.
The report therefore frames ferry construction not simply as a transportation issue, but as an opportunity to strengthen domestic industrial capacity, support Canadian workers and retain more economic activity within British Columbia.
