On 10 September 1985 Secretary of State for External Affairs Joe Clark announced in the House of Commons the government's commitment to build a major icebreaker for the Canadian Coast Guard. Versatile Pacific Shipyards was low bidder at 417 million dollars. Swan Wooster and the Canadian Icebreaker Design Group were chosen as Versatile's partners and contractors. The Canadian Icebreaker Design Group managed the process. By March 1989, after a rocky political ride, two proposals were prepared, one with a diesel electric propulsion system, and one with a geared diesel drive and controllable pitch propellers. The latter was cheaper by some 30 million dollars, cheaper to operate, and provided more capacity in the same space, but there were worries it would not provide the power for year round Arctic operation. The diesel electric was more technically elegant and flexible in operation, but carried with it a far greater risk to build and operate, and took up more space. As the project progressed and the costs rose, the government's commitment to the project weakened. On 20 February 1990 the Minister of Finance Michael Wilson announced its cancellation. Versatile's delays in construction start up were cited as a contributing factor, while political shifts in Eastern Europe to detente and Canada to continentalism diminished the needs for the defense and sovereignty protection an icebreaker would provide. A perceived problem of overcapacity in Canadian shipyards also diminished the government's interest in providing support. The loss of the contract was the last rivet in the coffin for Versatile Pacific Shipyard, which closed in 1992.