August 21, 2024 – North Vancouver, BC – Seaspan Shipyards (Seaspan) welcomes the Canadian Coast Guard’s (CCG) unveiling of the names of its two new heavy Polar Icebreakers, the CCGS Arpatuuq and CCGS Imnaryuaq. These vessels will be the flagship vessels of the Coast Guard’s fleet – the first of which will be built at Seaspan’s Vancouver Shipyards beginning late this year.
Once built, the CCGS Arpatuuq and CCGS Imnaryuaq will be the largest vessels in the Canadian Coast Guard’s fleet. The CCGS Arpatuuq and CCGS Imnaryuaq will provide Canada with essential capabilities to enable the Canadian Coast Guard to operate in the Canadian Arctic year-round to support icebreaking and navigation, Indigenous Peoples and Northern communities, Arctic sovereignty, high Arctic science including climate change, security and emergency response.
Working closely with the Canadian Coast Guard, Seaspan’s engineering team, including its partners, has completed 80% of the functional design for the Polar Icebreaker and production design is on track to support cutting steel late this year.
“Seaspan is in the midst of building 21 icebreaker class vessels including the ‘Polar Class 2’ Polar Icebreaker, and 16 ‘Polar Class 4’ Multi Purpose Vessel icebreakers. This makes Seaspan one of the leading icebreaker builders in the world today and for decades to come,” said John McCarthy, CEO, Seaspan Shipyards. “Following our recent, successful launch of CCGS Naalak Nappaaluk, the Canadian Coast Guard’s most modern ice capable science research vessel, Seaspan is continuing to design, build and deliver highly capable Polar Class vessels which has us in an ideal position to play a major role in the ICE Pact program.”
In preparation for full-rate construction, Seaspan successfully completed construction of a Polar ‘Prototype Block’ earlier this year to ensure that our production teams are fully prepared to cut steel on the Polar Icebreaker. The process of building the Prototype Block resulted in learnings in three key areas: improvements in design for manufacturing; testing of new equipment, processes and procedures; and validation of first-time quality in manufacturing to form and weld this new, specialized and thicker steel.
QUICK FACTS
- With a design displacement of 26,036t, the Polar Icebreaker will be 158 metres long and 28 metres wide, and able to accommodate up to 100 personnel. It will be able to operate farther north, in more difficult ice conditions and for longer periods than any icebreaker in Canada to date.
- As part of Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy, Seaspan is tasked with designing, building and delivering 21 icebreaker vessels for the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG). As of today, we have already delivered three icebreaker vessels, and a fourth will be delivered early next year.
- Under the NSS, Seaspan has become a major economic and job creation engine. According to an economic analysis conducted by Deloitte, Seaspan has contributed $5.7 billion to Canada’s GDP since 2012, while also creating or sustaining more than 7,000 jobs annually.
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ABOUT SEASPAN
Seaspan is a leader in Canada’s ship design, engineering, building and ship repair industry. With modern facilities and a dedicated workforce of approximately 4,000 in North Vancouver and Victoria, the company has proven itself to be a trusted and strategic partner on a range of complex projects for both government and the private sector.
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