The Mission

Canada’s new Polar Icebreaker will be the Canadian Coast Guard’s multi-role vessel and is designed with a high degree of operational flexibility to support multiple missions including important Arctic science programs. The Polar Icebreaker will be a modern, multipurpose 3-season vessel with the ability to overwinter as needed. The ship will be capable of breaking up to 2.5 metres of ice and can sustain operations in 2.2 metres of level ice. This ice breaking capability is a key design feature which allows the Canadian Coast Guard to deliver a variety of important programs. Some of these missions include Search and Rescue, Environmental Response, Marine Navigation, Icebreaking and Arctic Science. The Polar Icebreaker will 
also support Community and Northern Resupply missions through escort icebreaking to allow commercial fleet owners to deliver goods. The Polar Icebreaker can also deliver goods directly when commercial options aren’t available.

Recent Polar Icebreaker Updates

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Specifications

Length Overall 158.2m Light Ship Weight (EOSL) 20, 097 t Classificaton LLoyd’s Polar Class PC2
Breadth (Moulded) 28m Top Speed 18 knots
Design Waterline 10.5m Range 20,800 NM
Design Displacement 25,995 t Complement 100 Persons

The Polar Icebreaker will support Canada’s Arctic missions, sovereignty, and presence.
Canada’s Icebreaker has a logistical endurance of 270 days in the Arctic.
The Polar Icebreaker is a modern, multi-purpose three-season vessel that is also capable of safely over-wintering.

Virtual Polar Icebreaker Industry Day

Thank you to the hundreds of suppliers who joined us for our virtual Polar Icebreaker Industry Day. If you are interested in supplier opportunities with Seaspan Shipyards, tell us about your company on our supplier portal: supplier.seaspan.com
  • Unable to attend? Watch recording of the full event below.

 

Polar Icebreaker Industry Day – Additional Questions & Answers

1. I’ve registered on Seaspan’s Supplier Portal but did not receive an email confirmation. What’s next?

Registering is the first step in the supplier engagement process. Although you did not receive an email after your registration, rest assured that our Supply Chain team has received your submission and is reviewing your information in preparation for future Polar RFP opportunities.

If a product or service you supply matches our criteria for what we are looking for, we will reach out to you directly.  Please ensure your contact information in our Supplier Portal is kept up to date.

2. Is additional prequalification required to be selected as a potential supplier for a future Polar RFP package? How will the RFPs be sent out?

If you have registered on Seaspan’s Supplier Portal, there are no additional actions required at this time. When we are ready to release RFP packages, we will communicate next steps for these opportunities through email.

3. Are non-Canadian suppliers being considered for the Polar Program?

Non-Canadian suppliers willing to invest long-term into the Canadian economy through maximizing Canadian content are welcome as potential partners. Canadian content is a primary consideration in Seaspan’s RFP process, in alignment with the Government of Canada’s Industrial Regional Benefits (IRB) Policy. This can be accomplished by providing direct Canadian content through procurement of Canadian material and services, and indirectly through investments made in Canada, such as partnerships with Canadian small and medium-sized business, research & development,  and skills development and training opportunities within Canada.

4. Does the Industrial Regional Benefits (IRB) Policy apply on all Seaspan programs? What does that mean for a potential supplier for the Polar Program?

Under the National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS), Seaspan’s contracts with the Government of Canada are governed by the IRB policy. The IRB policy requires companies to undertake business activities in Canada valued at 100 percent of the value of the contracts they have been awarded– and is measured in Canadian Content Value (CCV). To meet this obligation, Seaspan is looking to source from Canadian suppliers, wherever commercially reasonable, and the CCV of the goods and services offered by potential Canadian suppliers is a key consideration in our supplier selection process.