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There is ongoing concern in the Royal Canadian Navy and the Department of National Defence that the $26 billion set aside for the Canadian Surface Combatant project might not produce enough ships.

The RCN originally envisioned 16 Canadian Surface Combatants (CSCs). Those vessels were to replace 12 frigates and four destroyers and form the backbone of the future Canadian navy. That number was later reduced to 15.

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Then with the introduction of the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy, the Conservative government listed the number of Canadian Surface Combatants as being “up to 15.”

On Friday Defence Minister Jason Kenney introduced a new number.

Andrea Gunn of the Chronicle Herald noted that Kenney pointed out that inflation could mean fewer surface combatants. “We’re not going to write a blank cheque on this program,” Kenney told reporters. “Based on the expert advice that we received from the Royal Canadian Navy after exhaustive analysis by the Department of Public Works, following the most exhaustive and transparent major procurement process in Canadian government history, we believe it’s possible with a $26 billion budget to build between 11 and 15 surface combatants.”

So at the bottom end of the project, only 11 ships could be produced.

That won’t come as a surprise to the RCN. Some Navy officers have been suggesting that the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy will produce as few as eight Canadian Surface Combatants.