Federal assessment sought on former Crofton mill as potential navy port
The federal government is being urged to launch an immediate feasibility assessment into whether the shuttered Crofton pulp and paper mill could serve as a port and industrial base for the Royal Canadian Navy — a proposal that links local economic pain on Vancouver Island to Ottawa’s broader shipbuilding plans.
Jeff Kibble, the Conservative Member of Parliament for Cowichan-Malahat-Langford and shadow minister for defence procurement, has called on Ottawa to examine the 107-hectare former Domtar mill site in Crofton before it is sold. He characterised the deep-water port and the extensive upland industrial footprint as a rare opportunity as the federal government plans to expand its submarine and destroyer fleet.
“As an MP for the region and Crofton, [the closure has had] a devastating impact on the local economy and indeed for the whole Island,”
Kibble, a retired navy veteran, framed the proposal as both a potential defence asset and an economic remedy for a community hit hard by the plant’s closure. The mill, which had been a fixture in the Cowichan region since 1956, announced in December that it would permanently close after years of curtailments related to weak pulp and paper markets. The site has been fully closed since the spring.
More than 300 people lost their jobs when the mill closed, and the Municipality of North Cowichan has seen a substantial drop in tax revenue that had helped fund infrastructure and essential services. Those local impacts are central to calls from MPs and municipal leaders to ensure a thorough federal review of the site’s potential before any sale or redevelopment is finalised.
Local officials, buyers and provincial interest
North Cowichan Mayor Rob Douglas confirmed Domtar has listed the mill for sale and enlisted BMO Capital Markets to identify potential buyers and uses. Douglas said the municipality has already seen more than a dozen proposals and that others have gone directly to Domtar and its financial adviser, while some approaches have been made to the provincial government.
He said new industrial proposals include manufacturing — some from the forestry sector — and energy production. Douglas also noted that Premier David Eby has discussed the Crofton site as a potential location for shipbuilding and repair.
- Site area: 107 hectares of upland industrial land plus a deep-water port
- Jobs lost: More than 300
- Primary interests reported: manufacturing, forestry-related industry, energy production, shipbuilding/repair
Those competing proposals underscore the commercial interest in the parcel of land and the urgency expressed by local and federal politicians to weigh all options, including defence-related uses, while the site remains on the market.
Connection to federal shipbuilding strategy
The pitch to Ottawa explicitly links the Crofton site to national defence procurement. Kibble said the deep-water access and sizable industrial footprint would be advantageous as Canada plans to expand its submarine and destroyer fleet. He is pressing for the Royal Canadian Navy to be at the table during any feasibility assessment.
For Ottawa, the questions are procedural and strategic: whether an assessment is warranted before a private sale is concluded; how quickly such a study could be completed; and whether conversion of a former pulp mill into a naval support facility would align with long-term procurement, basing and regional economic-development objectives.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Site size | 107 hectares upland plus deep-water port |
| Employment impact | More than 300 jobs lost |
| Current marketing | Listed for sale; BMO Capital Markets advising Domtar |
Municipal leaders have a clear stake in the outcome. Tax revenue from the mill had supported local infrastructure and services, and the sudden loss of that revenue has heightened interest in any solution that could restore industrial employment and municipal finances.
While the Crofton proposal would require federal coordination with the Royal Canadian Navy, industry partners and the local community, Kibble made clear his objective: to protect workers and help the local economy while also contributing to national defence capacity. Whether Ottawa will act to prioritise a defence-sector assessment before the site is sold remains to be seen.
Any federal decision will have ripple effects: for Crofton and the Municipality of North Cowichan, for provincial planning discussions already under way, and for Ottawa’s broader shipbuilding and naval basing strategy as the country plans to expand its fleet.
This developing proposal joins other regional conversations about how communities and the federal government align industrial capacity with defence and economic policy. The coming weeks will show whether Ottawa will convene the navy, industry and local stakeholders for the feasibility work Kibble and municipal leaders are requesting.
