McKeil

What McKeil does

McKeil Marine Limited, founded in 1956 by Evans McKeil and headquartered in Burlington, Ontario, is a privately held Canadian marine services provider operating a diversified fleet of more than 50 vessels across bulk carriers, tankers, tugs, barges, and workboats. The company delivers customized marine transportation and project services throughout the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway, the Canadian East Coast, and the Canadian Arctic, with operations extending into the United States. Its service portfolio covers dry bulk, liquid bulk, and general cargo transportation; consultation, naval architecture, and project planning; marine construction, heavy-lift project cargo, and salvage; harbour and coastal towing plus ship assists; and equipment rental, supplemented by ice breaking, diving, and certified logistics studies.

The core technology is the physical fleet itself, configured with shallow-draft capabilities, ice class, and modular fittings (bin walls, retractable roof panels, ramps, single-point loading systems) that allow access to ports and project sites unreachable by larger ocean carriers. McKeil monetizes through negotiated charter, contract shipping, voyage, and project-based agreements with enterprise and government customers, organized regionally across Great Lakes, Quebec/St. Lawrence, and East Coast business development teams. The customer base spans steel (Essar Steel Algoma, Algoma Steel), aluminum (Aluminerie Alouette), mining (Vale, Canadian Royalties), oil and gas (ExxonMobil Hebron), cement (Essroc, Federal White Cement), heavy lift (Mammoet), wind energy, aggregates, and port authorities (Belledune, Toledo). In November 2023, US-based Astatine Investment Partners LLC acquired McKeil Marine, positioning the company for further capital-led fleet and market expansion under PE ownership.

Name

McKeil

Legal name

McKeil Marine Limited

Website

https://mckeil.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1956

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

McKeil Marine is a Canadian, privately held marine services provider founded in 1956, operating a 50+ vessel fleet of bulkers, tankers, tugs, and barges across the Great Lakes, St. Lawrence Seaway, East Coast, and Canadian Arctic. It serves industrial and government customers in steel, aluminum, mining, oil and gas, cement, and heavy lift sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marine Transportation Services

NAICS

Deep Sea, Coastal, and Great Lakes Water Transportation (48311), Coastal and Great Lakes Freight Transportation (483113)

SIC

Water Transportation (4400)

akta.pro primary industry

Heavy Lift & Marine Recovery (Cranes, Barges, Jack-up Support) (TLAHAIAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Emergency Towage & Rescue (Refloating, Grounding Response) (IMAJANAB), Heavy Lift & Marine Recovery (Cranes, Lift Barges, Rigging) (IMAJANAC)

Keywords

• Marine transportation services
• Bulk cargo shipping
• Harbour towing services
• Project cargo logistics
• Marine vessel charter

Headquarters

HQ city

Burlington

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Marine Transportation Services: Transportation of dry bulk, liquid bulk, and general cargo throughout the Great Lakes, St. Lawrence Seaway, and East Coast. Revenue is generated through charter agreements, contract shipping, and voyage-based arrangements with industrial customers.
2. Project Services: Specialized marine project services including marine construction, project cargo movement, salvage operations, and equipment rental. These are typically project-based contracts for complex or oversized cargo.
3. Consultation and Planning: Marine logistics consultation, engineering design, and project planning services for customers requiring specialized marine solutions.
4. Towing and Ship Assists: Harbour and coastal towing services, ship assist operations, and 24/7 docking services in the Welland Canal and St. Lawrence Seaway.
5. Equipment Rental: Rental of barges, tugs, workboats, and related marine equipment to customers requiring temporary marine capabilities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

McKeil Marine delivers customized marine transportation and project services across the Great Lakes, St. Lawrence Seaway, East Coast, and Canadian Arctic. The company moves dry bulk, liquid bulk, and general cargo using a fleet of bulk carriers, tankers, tugs, barges, and workboats, and complements transportation with consultation/planning, marine construction, salvage, towing/ship assist, and equipment rental services.

Product overview

McKeil Marine is a Canadian marine services provider offering a unified portfolio of maritime transportation and project services. The core offerings include Transportation Services (dry bulk, liquid bulk, and general cargo), Consultation & Planning, Project Services (marine construction, project cargo, salvage), Towing & Ship Assists, and Equipment Rental. Their fleet comprises bulk carriers (Harvest Spirit, Evans Spirit, Florence Spirit, Blair McKeil), tankers (Hinch Spirit, Wicky Spirit, Northern Spirit), tugs (Leonard M, Sharon M I, Beverly M I, and others), barges (Nunavut Spirit, MM Newfoundland, Glovertown Spirit, Huron Spirit), and workboats. Services operate throughout the Great Lakes, St. Lawrence Seaway, East Coast and Canadian Arctic, serving industries including mining, oil and gas, construction, wind energy, and agriculture.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Transportation Services

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 2 million metric tonnes of aluminum transported for Aluminerie Alouette since 2004, reducing road congestion and greenhouse gas emissions
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers16 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• CSL Group (Canada Steamship Lines): Largest carrier on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway, operating a large fleet of self-unloading bulk carriers and bulkers serving steel, mining, and construction customers. Directly comparable to McKeil on bulk transportation routes and customer segments.
• Algoma Central Corporation: TSX-listed Canadian marine transportation provider operating dry-bulk vessels, tankers, and product carriers on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway. Overlaps directly with McKeil on bulk transportation, customer base (steel, mining, grain), and geographic footprint.
• Fednav Limited: Canada's largest ocean-going bulk ship operator with significant Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway presence, serving mining and industrial customers. Comparable on bulk cargo capabilities and North American industrial customer base, though with broader international exposure.
• Groupe Desgagnés: Quebec-based marine transportation and ship management group operating tankers, bulk carriers, and tugs along the St. Lawrence River and into Arctic waters. Highly comparable on Great Lakes/St. Lawrence bulk and liquid cargo, plus remote/Arctic operations.
• Lower Lakes Towing (Rand Logistics): Short-sea bulk carrier operating on the Great Lakes with a fleet of self-unloading bulk carriers and river-class vessels. Directly overlaps with McKeil on dry-bulk transportation and Great Lakes industrial customers.
• Purvis Marine: Sarnia, Ontario-based marine services company operating tugs, barges, and cargo vessels on the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway. Comparable to McKeil on tug-and-barge operations, bulk transportation, and similar industrial customer base.
• Atlantic Towing: Marine services arm of J.D. Irving Limited, providing harbor towing, ship assist, and coastal marine transportation along Canada's East Coast and into Arctic waters. Comparable to McKeil on towing/ship-assist services and Canadian marine industrial operations.

Regional players

• Moran Towing Corporation: US East Coast and Gulf towage operator providing harbor towing, ship assist, and barge services. Comparable to McKeil's towing/ship-assist services but operating in a different geography, primarily serving US ports.

Broad incumbents

• Boluda Towage: Global harbor towage and maritime services operator with presence across the Americas, Europe, and Africa. Comparable to McKeil's towing and ship-assist services as a broader incumbent in the same tugage category.
• Saam Smit Towage: Joint venture providing harbor towage and terminal towage services across the Americas, including Canadian and US East Coast ports. Overlaps with McKeil's harbor and coastal towing capabilities as a larger incumbent player.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/mckeilcares
• Facebookfacebook.com/McKeilMarineLimited
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mckeil-marine-limited

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about McKeil