Canadians, Brits stress U.S., Texas are key to shipbuilding

By Bethany Blankley
The Center Square

Canadian and British shipbuilding entrepreneurs on Monday explained why the U.S. and Texas are critical to national defense.

The leaders of Davie Defense, Gulf Copper and Inocea Group joined Gov. Greg Abbott and other officials at a U.S. Coast Guard Arctic Security Cutter groundbreaking ceremony in Galveston, Texas, where three ASCs will be built.

Under the Republican governor, Texas has been leading on both border security efforts and Arctic defense, The Center Square reported. Davie Defense America, backed by Davie Shipbuilding in Canada and Helsinki Shipyard in Finland, is constructing the ASCs in Galveston and Port Arthur, Texas, The Center Square reported. Its parent company, Inocea Group, acquired the historic Gulf Copper shipyard in Gulf ports last December. Gulf Copper has been integral to shipbuilding in the Gulf for more than 75 years.

Through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, more than $3.5 billion was awarded to Davie Defense to build five ASCs. Three will be built in Texas and two in Finland. The ASC endeavor is an outworking of the Icebreaker Collaboration Effort (ICE Pact) a trilateral initiative among American, Finnish and Canadian leaders to advance shipbuilding and Arctic defense.

The groundbreaking in Galveston was part of a $1 billion modernization effort of Davie Defense’s Gulf Copper Shipyards, the first complex shipbuilding project in decades in Texas.

“This is a quintessential America First project” but it’s also a Texas first project, Abbott said at the groundbreaking. He also pointed to President Donald Trump’s leadership.

“America has had a dire need for more ships. What President Trump understands more than any other president is … if we truly want to be nationally secure, we must build our own ships in the United States of America. These ships will be built in Texas, crewed by Americans and deployed to defend American sovereignty in the fastest-growing strategic theater on Earth: the Arctic.”

Philip Burns-O’Brien, the Davie Defense CEO, said the endeavor “wasn’t just about concrete steel ships.” It’s about “investing in American workers, American industry and America’s long-term ability to operate wherever its interests and security are required.”

He said Texas was critical to shipbuilding because of the “more than a century of shipbuilding and maritime industries that have been part of the identity of Galveston and Port Arthur.”

Skilled workers in these port cities are “committed to hard work” and “understand what it means to build things that matter. That’s a big reason why we chose Texas as our home in America,” Burns-O’Brien said.

James Davies, president, CFO and founding partner of Inocea Group, also said their efforts were part of “a broader national effort to restore American maritime strength.”

“For three decades, much of the western world has assumed that major conflict was becoming a thing of the past. As a result, industrial capacity, including shipbuilding, was allowed to shrink,” he said. “History has a habit of reminding us specifically that peace is preserved not by hope alone but by preparedness and industrial capability. Industrial capability and capacity cannot simply be switched on when needed. It must be built, sustained and continuously improved. That’s why ships are amongst the most complex products any nation can manufacture. Building them requires skilled workers, advanced engineering, strong supply chains and long-term commitment.”

“We decided to bet on America because America decided to bet on itself. Under President Donald Trump, America recognized that maritime power matters, industrial capacity matters, manufacturing matters,” Davies added.

Referring to the ICE Pact, he said shipbuilding was possible because “when America decides to act, others gain confidence. They move faster and this momentum builds and … that’s what we’re seeing here today.

However, without Texas’ commitment to economic growth and pro-business policies, he said the new endeavor “couldn’t happen. In fact, the fact that it’s happening is incredible.

“There’s no better place to invest in the future of American industry than Texas, a state with an unshakable belief in building big things and backing those willing to try,” Davies said.

Alex Vicefield, chairman and CEO of Inocea Group, said, “America built the fleets that secure the oceans, protected commerce and shaped the modern world. But over time, its industrial strength and shipbuilding diminished not because America lost its ability and not because it lost its talent but because it turned its attention elsewhere.”

Under Trump and Abbott, “that all changed,” he said. “Texas understands how to build. Texas understands industry. Texas understands scale and ambition and hard work. The same spirit and many of the same skills that built the energy capital of the world here will build the shipbuilding capital of America.”

Referring to the biblical story of Noah and the Great Flood, Vicefield said he’s “always been fond of the story of Noah, not just because God chose a shipbuilder but because it’s a story about foresight. Noah was asked to build something before the need for it was obvious to everyone else. He was asked to prepare for a future challenge before the flood had arrived.

“In many ways, that is what shipbuilding has always been about,” Vicefield continued. “Great nations do not build fleets when the crisis arrives. They build them beforehand. They invest in capabilities before they’re needed. They prepare for the future. Putting that foresight into practice is exactly what we’re doing here today. In Texas, it’s very much go big or go home so we’re going big.”