VICTORIA, British Columbia \u2014 Canada will look to domestic or international firms to lease commercial vessels as it tries to deal with a capability gap in resupplying warships at sea.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Royal Canadian Navy had looked at the potential purchase of surplus US Navy ships but that is no longer being considered because of the cost and lack of availability of vessels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Navy RCN <\/span>is officially removing from service over the next 16 months its two aging supply ships, HMCS Preserver and HMCS Protecteur. But already that capability is considered shut down. Preserver has serious corrosion issues and HMCS <\/span>Protecteur was severely damaged after a fire broke out on the ship <\/span>when it was on exercises off Hawaii in early 2014. It was towed back to its home port in Esquimalt, British Columbia, and will not be repaired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Navy won’t have a replacement fleet fully ready until 2021, leaving. That leaves<\/span> it with a gap when it will not be capable of resupplying its warships at sea. So To deal with that problem, <\/span>Canada has now<\/span> asked companies for information about what at-sea services they can provide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Industry sources said Canada is looking at leasing a commercial ship capable of resupplying its frigates and other vessels. At a minimum, the leased ships must be capable of refueling ships underway at sea<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “The Department of National Defence is investigating interim options to address the at-sea support services capability gap,” confirmed <\/span>D<\/span>department of National Defence<\/span> spokesman Daniel Le Bouthillier said. “No decision on the way forward has been made at this time.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n But industry sources expect that decision to come sometime <\/span>this year as the need for a solution to be in place <\/span>is critical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n HMCS <\/span>Preserver and HMCS <\/span>Protecteur carried fuel, food and ammunition for warships. They also provided medical services and helicopter support and maintenance facilities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vice Adm.iral<\/span> Mark Norman, the head of the Navy, has said the loss of the supply ships is of particular concern and <\/span>must be dealt with as soon as possible. He noted the retirement of the two ships creates “a significant gap for Canada that we need to look to mitigate as quickly and as cost-effectively as we can.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Le Bouthillier said Canada will also look to deal with the capability gap by making arrangements with its key allies. The US Navy has offered assistance and the Canadian Navy is working to better coordinate at better coordinating <\/span>the movement of its ships with the US‘<\/span>N’s <\/span>supply ship availability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But Norman has acknowledged that solution is limited. The services of allied resupply ships are in high demand for their own navies, he noted<\/span>. In November, he estimated that Canada could rely on receiving help for at-sea resupply from its allies for about a year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “The challenge we have now is that the gap is here today, and in addition to that, it’s longer than 20 to 24 months, it’s several years,” Norman explained to journalists. “No matter what we do, we don’t see a long-term, sustainable solution coming from our allies.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n The lease arrangement would see the ships manned by commercial crews, although Navy personnel would operate communications equipment and the replenishment-at-sea systems that can transfer fuel to the frigates, industry sources say. The plan would eventually see those commercial crews replaced by Navy personnel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That move would deal with Norman’s concern that Navy personnel currently assigned to Preserver and Protecteur would lose their skills if they were <\/span>not using them those <\/span>on a regular basis<\/span>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n