A Symbol of Canadian Sovereignty in the Arctic Is Being Decommissioned
The decision to shut down the unfinished Canadian Nanisivik Naval Base, located in northern Baffin Island, has been anticipated since the COVID-19 pandemic, and preparations have begun to dismantle the military equipment and hand the facility over to an unspecified third party.
This decision, driven by budgetary pressures, will deprive Canada of one-fifth of its military installations in the Arctic.
Canada, the second-largest country in the world after Russia in terms of territory (9,984,670 square kilometers), has never developed into a responsible Arctic state throughout its history due to resource constraints, primarily demographic, as well as a lack of unified political will, weakened by the democratic system itself, with its short electoral cycles that preclude political continuity and its division into provinces with broad rights and, in the case of the most populous state, Quebec, de facto independence.
The population of Canada’s Arctic and North is only 150,000 people. Of this number, approximately half are Indigenous people, or 0.36% of the country’s population, living in a territory of 3,535,263 square kilometers, which accounts for 35.4% of the country’s territory.
At the same time, the population of the Murmansk Region alone, located entirely in the Arctic, remains at 650,000, even after a significant decline in the post-Soviet period.
In 2024, 2.4 million people lived in the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation, covering 3,754,600 square kilometers (approximately 22% of Russia’s territory), compared to almost 4 million in the entire Arctic.
The world’s highest permanent population density in the Russian Arctic makes it possible to implement large-scale projects that, among other things, have global potential.
The attitude of Canada’s wealthy southern provinces toward the sparsely populated, poor, and politically weak Arctic territories has always been one of consumption, and to this day they are effectively viewed as a resource-rich periphery, not receiving their fair share of national wealth.
The closure of a major military facility, amid the Carney government’s promises to strengthen the defense of the Canadian Arctic as a countermeasure to rebut US accusations of neglecting Arctic security, seems grotesque.
If Uncle Sam had wanted to take the Canadian Arctic by force, he could have done so with even less effort than Germany spent capturing Denmark in April 1940. The operation lasted a full six hours, and two German soldiers were killed, compared to 16 Danish casualties.
However, Canada’s restless and unpredictable southern neighbor has many other concerns at the moment. While managing these, it is unlikely to fail to notice Canada’s military weakening in the Arctic and, with good reason, will be able to accuse it of failing to fulfill its obligations to strengthen its vast territory militarily.
The Failed Project
Canada’s government noted that it has spent more than $110 million on the Nanisivik naval base to date and that an additional $200 million would have been needed to make it fully operational.
The Liberal government is closing the Nanisivik naval base, located north of Baffin Island, as part of a cost-cutting measure and plans to eventually transfer the site to a third party.
The Department of National Defence indicated that it has already begun decommissioning the Nanisivik naval base due to changes in operational requirements and the viability of the facility.
This Arctic base, created by Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government, was conceived as a deep-water port and a symbol of Canadian sovereignty in the Arctic.
The base was built on a former mining site and renovated by the federal government, but only became operational in recent years, after many years of delays and cost overruns.
Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government insisted that the site offered only limited benefits due to the very short seasonal access period, repeated construction problems and delays, significant reductions in the scope of operations, and costly jetty repairs.
Defense Minister David McGuinty explained in a press release that much had changed in the Arctic since the base was initially announced in 2007 and that the government’s priorities had to “adapt to today’s realities.”
National Defence also indicated that the fuel range of the Harry DeWolf-class Arctic patrol vessels renders the base useless as a refueling point.
The government noted that it has spent over $110 million on the facility to date and that an additional $200 million would be required to make it fully operational.
It also emphasized that the site has never been used for “routine or extended naval operations.”
Ottawa plans to eventually decommission it. The government indicated that it does not yet have a plan to do so and that it will first consult with Indigenous stakeholders.
A 2018 report by the federal auditor general warned that the Nanisivik naval base would provide little value to the Navy and would be unable to effectively support ships operating in the Arctic, as it could only function for four weeks a year as a seasonal refueling station.
Conservative defense critic James Bezan said the base’s closure demonstrated the government’s failure to strengthen Canada’s military presence in the Arctic. He accused the Liberals of rendering the base unusable.
“The Liberals changed the plans for the naval base and decided that the fuel tanks did not need to be heated in the High Arctic. This foolish decision ensured that Nanisivik would be virtually unusable,” Bezan said in an emailed statement.
The Harper government announced the Arctic port project in 2007.
Originally, it was to include a large berth, year-round access to fuel, and facilities for military personnel.
Due to significant cost overruns, the Harper government drastically scaled back its vision for the project before leaving office. It reduced the planned fuel storage capacity and abandoned plans for a runway and year-round accommodations.
A National Defence briefing note obtained by The Canadian Press in 2014 warned that the Arctic facility “would have no functional use during the winter.”
The upgrades were initially scheduled for completion in 2015, but were only finished in recent years.
The work was plagued by delays under the government of Justin Trudeau and was completely halted during the pandemic.
The project was finally completed in 2024.
Source: La Presse (in French)
Further reading:
Ottawa reveals plans to shut down and offload Nanisivik naval port on Baffin Island
