Nanisivik Naval Facility, Naval facility in Nunavut, Canada
The Nanisivik Naval Facility is a military installation on Baffin Island equipped with two large storage tanks connected to the jetty by pipeline infrastructure. The site serves as a fuel depot for Canadian naval vessels operating in Arctic waters.
The Nanisivik Mine, a lead-zinc operation on Baffin Island, ran from 1976 to 2002 and closed as metal prices fell and reserves shrank. On 10 August 2007 Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced a docking and refuelling facility at the mine's deepwater jetty, chosen for its position at the eastern entrance to the Northwest Passage. Construction began in August 2014 after Nunavut Impact Review Board approval, with tank farm work in 2016-17.
Nanisivik means "the place where people find things" in Inuktitut, a name given to the lead-zinc mine and company town built in the 1970s. The site sits within the eastern entrance to the Northwest Passage via Admiralty Inlet, the waterway that made it useful for shipping and later for naval refuelling.
The port is designed to operate only during the four-month summer season, roughly June to October, when Arctic waters are navigable. Access is restricted to authorized personnel and vessels; there are no public tours. The site lies at the eastern entrance to the Northwest Passage via Admiralty Inlet, and the former Nanisivik Airport, which could receive jet aircraft, closed in 2011.
The jetty was built for the Nanisivik lead-zinc mine, which operated from 1976 to 2002 and shipped ore out by sea. Measurements in 2010 showed the wharf had sunk about two metres, and drilling in 2011 found a deep clay layer beneath it that was compressing. The settling was one reason the port plan was scaled back.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 92,913 contributors worldwide.