The funds are not earmarked for anything to do with the actual construction of the ships, but instead to fund DND’s evaluation of the the bids this year — and they would be in addition to the $39 million the department has already received to review the bids, according to defence sources.
The cost of the new Canadian Surface Combatants, which will replace the existing Halifax-class frigates, has steadily been climbing. The 15 ships were originally estimated to cost $15 billion. That increased to $24 billion before DND came out with a new estimate of around $40 billion. That too has since changed, and the project is now estimated to cost between $55 billion and $60 billion — and even then, the federal government acknowledges it doesn’t know what the program’s final cost will be to taxpayers.
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