About

Qikiqtaaluk Corporation is founded by the Qikiqtani Inuit Association as its for-profit development arm.

QC partners with Makivik Corporation and the Labrador Inuit Association to form Unaaq Fisheries.

QC is issued an Iqaluit business licence to operate an offshore fishery — a landmark step in formalizing Inuit-owned offshore harvesting operations in the Eastern Arctic.

QC establishes Qikiqtaaluk Fisheries Corporation (QFC) as a majority-owned partnership, creating a dedicated commercial fisheries entity to grow Inuit offshore harvesting operations.

QFC acquires the MV Saputi, a factory freezer trawler, marking the beginning of Inuit-owned offshore commercial fishing operations at scale. Named from the Inuktitut word for “fishing weir,” the Saputi begins harvesting Northern Coldwater Shrimp and Greenland Halibut across Baffin Bay, Davis Strait, and Hudson Strait.

The MV Saputi undergoes a major retrofit — extended by 12 metres to 76 metres in length. Hold capacity is expanded to carry up to 900 tonnes of turbot or 600 tonnes of Northern Shrimp, significantly increasing the vessel’s commercial efficiency and harvest capability.

QC adds the RV Ludy Pudluk to its research fleet — a purpose-built aluminum catamaran constructed by Kanter Marine in St. Thomas, Ontario. Designed for the shallow coastal waters of Nunavut, she conducts near-shore research in Hudson Strait, the Belcher Islands, Eastern Hudson Bay, and Foxe Basin in cooperation with Memorial University’s Fisheries and Marine Institute.

QC acquires the RV Moses Appaqaq — a 31.4-metre,research vessel from the Irish Marine Institute.). The vessel conducts fisheries research, environmental monitoring, seabed mapping, and oceanographic surveys, and becomes the primary training platform for the Inuit Employee in Training (IEIT) program.

QFC acquires the MV Mersey Phoenix — a 71 x 17 -metre factory freezer trawler — from Mersey Seafoods Limited, along with a Canadian Northern Shrimp Licence representing two DFO offshoe shrimp quotas. The acquisition, financed with support from Export Development Canada (EDC), makes Qikiqtaaluk Corporation the largest holder of Northern Shrimp quota in Canada and QFC the largest offshore shrimp harvester in Atlantic Canada. QFC now holds 3.5 of 17 offshore shrimp licences in Atlantic Canada.

QFC takes delivery of the MV Saputi II — a next-generation 79 x 17 meter multi species factory freezer trawler built in a Spanish shipyard. The newest addition to the fleet expands QFC’s offshore harvesting capacity and reflects a generational commitment to building Inuit commercial fishing infrastructure that will endure for decades.