Construction starts on new heavy polar icebreaker for Canada

Construction officially started on one of two new heavy polar icebreakers for the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG), marking the first time in over 60 years that such a vessel has been built in Canada, says the company behind the project. 

“The capabilities of this Polar Class 2 icebreaker will help sustain a 12-month presence in Canada’s North in support of Canada’s Arctic sovereignty, high-Arctic science (including climate change research), Indigenous Peoples and other northern communities, and the ability to respond to major maritime emergencies including search and rescue,”  Seaspan Shipyards said in a statement.

“This icebreaker will ensure that we can continue to monitor and respond to activity in Canada’s Northern waters.”

Year-round operating capabilities 

The icebreaker, measuring 158m long is designed to operate year-round in the high Arctic.

The vessel is one of two to be built, that will replace the Canadian Coast Guard Ship (CCGS) Louis S. St-Laurent. (The second vessel will be built by Chantier Davie Canada Inc. in Quebec.)

When finished, the two vessels will be named CCGS Arpatuuq and CCGS Imnaryuaq, both coming from the Inuit language. The CCGS Arpatuuq is named after Akpatok Island in Nunavik in Arctic Quebec.

The CCGS Imnaryuaq gets its name from a cape at the southern tip of Banks Island, in Canada’s Arctic Archipelago.

Canada has 162,000 km of Arctic coastline, and as the polar region becomes increasingly important for national security and environmental monitoring, Ottawa says the vessel will play a key role in supporting Coast Guard operations and scientific research.

The icebreaker construction projects are part of Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy, a broader effort to modernize Canada’s fleet and strengthen its presence in the North.

“The National Shipbuilding Strategy is showing that a made-in-Canada approach is not only possible, it is imperative to Canada’s security and sovereignty,”  John McCarthy, CEO of the Vancouver-based Seaspan Shipyards in a statement.

“We must continue to design and build ships here at home, to ensure that the experience, skills, and knowledge built through the NSS will be sustained.”

Comments, tips or story ideas? Contact Eilís at eilis.quinn(at)cbc.ca

Related stories from around the North: 

Canada: Canada, U.S. and Finland form pact to build icebreakers for Arctic, CBC News

Russia: Nuclear-powered icebreakers bring record loss for shipyard, The Independent Barents Observer

United States: White House releases U.S. Arctic strategy implementation plan, Eye on the Arctic

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