Ottawa to spend $35 billion upgrading northern air bases and airports

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday, March 12, unveiled a broad plan aimed at strengthening security and infrastructure across Canada’s northern regions, including $35 billion in investments over the next decade to upgrade military air bases and airports.

Although the strategy was newly presented, the funding itself had already been announced in 2022 as part of a modernisation program for the North American Aerospace Defence Command. After several years of planning, the government has now outlined how those funds will be spent.

Defence officials said during a background briefing that the government has begun issuing tenders and is seeking private-sector contractors to expand air base infrastructure.

According to a statement from the Prime Minister’s Office, previous administrations lacked the scale and breadth of strategy required for the vast northern region. Carney said the government intends to strengthen Canada’s presence in the Arctic, improve connectivity for northern communities and unlock the region’s economic potential.

The plan also aims to reinforce continental defence, deter emerging threats and support allies within NATO as well as the NORAD defence framework.

A major component of the blueprint involves $32 billion in upgrades to forward operating military bases located in Yellowknife, Inuvik, Iqaluit and at a deployed operating base at 5 Wing Goose Bay in Happy Valley-Goose Bay.

These facilities are intended to support the operation of Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II fighter jets, though officials say they could also accommodate Saab JAS 39 Gripen aircraft. The government has not yet decided whether Canada will operate a mixed fleet of fighters.

The plan also includes building two Northern Operational Support Hubs in Whitehorse and Resolute, along with smaller support nodes in the Nunavut communities of Cambridge Bay and Rankin Inlet. These support facilities will receive $2.67 billion in funding.

The investments will also be used to upgrade airfields, fuel storage sites and ammunition compounds, as well as to enhance the protection of defence data systems at the bases.

An additional $294 million will be allocated to improvements at Rankin Inlet Airport and to the runway at Inuvik Airport.

Beyond military infrastructure, the government has referred several major transportation and energy proposals to Canada’s Major Projects Office for review.

These include the Mackenzie Valley Highway, an approximately 800-kilometre route intended to provide year-round road access between Yellowknife and Inuvik and expand commercial opportunities in the region.

Another proposal is the Grays Bay Road and Port project, which would involve building a 230-kilometre all-season road from the Nunavut border to a deep-water port.

The Major Projects Office will also help accelerate approvals for the Arctic Economic Security Corridor, another planned all-season road network that would connect with the Grays Bay project.

The government has also referred the Taltson Hydro Expansion Project, designed to double hydroelectric capacity for about 70 per cent of residents in the Northwest Territories, to the office for review.

The Major Projects Office aims to complete approvals within two years. However, since its launch last August, it has not yet approved any projects.

The Liberal government says the infrastructure investments and proposed developments are intended to support the extraction of critical minerals, expand clean energy production and strengthen trade corridors in northern Canada.

By Tamilla Hasanova