Coast Guard awards first contracts to address icebreaker shortage to shipyards in Louisiana, Finland

The Coast Guard has awarded its first contracts to build polar icebreakers as part of a $6.1 billion trilateral partnership with the U.S., Canada and Finland.

The Coast Guard has contracted with Louisiana-based Bollinger Shipyards and Finland’s Rauma Marine Constructions to build up to six Arctic Security Cutter icebreakers as part of the trilateral Icebreaker Collaboration Effort.

Bollinger Shipyards will construct four icebreakers at its shipyard in Houma, Louisiana, about 60 miles southwest of New Orleans. Rauma Marine will build the others at its facility in Rauma, Finland.

The Arctic Security Cutters will enable the Coast Guard to secure Alaskan borders, facilitate maritime commerce vital to economic prosperity and respond to any crisis in the region, U.S. officials said.

“Our adversaries continue to look to grow their presence in the Arctic. Equipping the Coast Guard with Arctic Security Cutters will help reassert American maritime dominance there,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said after the contracts were awarded on Friday. “Revitalizing the U.S. Coast Guard’s icebreaking capabilities is crucial for our security and prosperity, and today’s announcement is an important step in that direction.”

The Coast Guard currently has three operational polar icebreakers: the heavy Polar Star, the medium Healy and the Storis, a medium icebreaker that was originally built as the commercial vessel Alviq for oil exploration.

Russia has 40-60 icebreakers, including at least eight that are believed to be nuclear-powered.

“These ships will operate in some of the harshest conditions on earth,” Bollinger Shipyards President Ben Bordelon said in a statement. “Our responsibility is to deliver a stable, reliable platform that Coast Guard crews can trust from their first mission underway and for decades to come.”

Rauma Marine CEO Mike Nieminen said his company secured the deal to construct two Coast Guard icebreakers based on its expertise and ability to build the ships within the required time frame. The icebreakers are expected to be completed by 2028.

The Coast Guard stated that the first domestically built polar icebreaker is scheduled to be completed in 2029.

“Our fast delivery times make us the most affordable option on the market,” Mr. Nieminen said. “Our focus is straightforward: execute with discipline, manage risk rigorously, and deliver two cutters that are ready to operate in the world’s harvest maritime environment from day one.”