Canada Navy River-class Ordered

The Government of Canada awarded Irving Shipbuilding the implementation contract for the first three River-class destroyers on 10 March 2025, Naval Today reported. The initial contract, worth about C$8 billion including taxes, covers the first six years of construction and delivers the future HMCS Fraser, Saint-Laurent and Mackenzie together with training, spares and support, within a government estimate of C$22.2 billion to build the first three ships. Based on BAE Systems' Type 26 design also being built for the Royal Navy and the Royal Australian Navy, the class will replace the Halifax-class frigates and the retired Iroquois-class destroyers in the largest Canadian shipbuilding project since the Second World War.