Glooscap First Nation buying Lunenburg, Mahone Bay shipyards

A small First Nations community in Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley has signed an agreement in principle to assume majority ownership of two shipyards on the province's south shore.

Michael Peters, CEO of Glooscap Ventures, the investment firm that handles economic development for the Glooscap First Nation, said the deal to purchase the East River Shipyard in Mahone Bay and the Lunenburg Shipyard, is an opportunity for further growth.

Both shipyards handle maintenance and repairs for recreational and commercial vessels, but Peters said Glooscap hopes to expand the facilities to build and repair larger boats and pursue new procurement opportunities, including with the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Coast Guard.

The company will be run under a subsidiary called Glooscap Defence. In a press release, Glooscap Ventures said the purchase will make Glooscap Defence the largest and only majority-owned Indigenous defence contractor in the country.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

'We needed a backer,' says former owner

Brad Boutilier, who purchased the East River Shipyard in 2020 and the Lunenburg Shipyard in 2023, will retain a minority stake in the business and stay on as CEO once the deal has been finalized.

He said he's been focusing on getting both shipyards back on their feet in the past few years and is looking forward to partnering with Glooscap to grow the business further.

"We're great operators, we build great teams, and we needed a backer, a good supporter … to help our growth," said Boutilier. "We've done a lot of special [things] on our own, but together, we could do something far greater."

Plans to double workforce

He said he expects the number of workers at both shipyards to double from 40 to 80 by next year.

Glooscap Ventures currently has around 80 employees, with annual revenue of roughly $45 million, Peters said.

Among other holdings, Glooscap owns a convenience store, gaming centre, gas station, several lobster boats and licences, and the Yarmouth Bar Fisheries lobster processing plant.

It has also invested in several renewable energy projects across the province.

All profits from its operations go back into the community, Peters said.

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