Icebreakers – Professional Mariner

10 Oct

Bollinger, Finnish yard to build first Arctic security cutters

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsIcebreakers, shipbuilding, U.S. Coast Guard

(WASHINGTON) — President Trump on Thursday announced that Bollinger Shipyards, in conjunction with Rauma Marine Constructions, Seaspan Shipyards and Aker Arctic Technology Inc., will lead an effort to supply six Arctic security cutters under an initiative to deliver next-generation icebreakers to the U.S. Coast Guard by 2028, USNI News reported. “We sort of have almost a monopoly on icebreakers if…

06 Oct

Newest Coast Guard icebreaker completes first patrol

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsIcebreakers, shipbuilding

(SEATTLE) — The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Storis (WAGB 21), the service’s newest commissioned icebreaker, arrived in Seattle on Friday after completing its 112-day inaugural patrol. Storis departed Pascagoula, Miss., on June 1, then transited the Panama Canal and the Pacific Ocean en route to conduct its first Arctic patrol operating north of the Bering Strait to control, secure and defend…

26 Sep

Polar Star returns home after service life extension

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsIcebreakers, Security, U.S. Coast Guard

(SEATTLE) — After 308 days away from its Seattle home port, the 49-year-old U.S. Coast Guard cutter Polar Star (WAGB 10) and crew returned home Tuesday. Upon completing Operation Deep Freeze (ODF) 2025, Polar Star returned directly to Mare Island Dry Dock in Vallejo, Calif., to complete the final year of a five-year Service Life Extension Program (SLEP). Polar Star's…

08 Sep

Weakley: Great Lakes icebreaker gap threatens U.S. maritime dominance

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsGreat Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System, Icebreakers

When Americans think of our coastlines, most picture the beaches of the Atlantic, the Pacific, or the Gulf. But the Great Lakes are America’s fourth coast – a 2,300-mile expanse reaching deep into the nation’s industrial heartland. Each year, this system moves more than 135 million tons of cargo worth over $26 billion, carrying the raw materials that power American…

25 Aug

Helsinki yard cuts steel on Canada’s next polar icebreaker

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsIcebreakers, shipbuilding

(LEVIS, Quebec) — In a historic milestone for the Canadian shipbuilding industry, Davie on Wednesday officially began construction of the Polar Max icebreaker, a vessel that, once delivered by 2030, will redefine Canada’s Arctic capabilities. Uniquely, Polar Max will be constructed through an innovative industrial collaboration between Canadian-controlled facilities in Helsinki, Finland, and Levis, Quebec. Construction on the Polar Max…

19 Aug

U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain recognized as Great Lakes champion

Professional Mariner StaffIndustry NewsGreat Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway System, Icebreakers, Ports

(PORT HURON, Mich.) — On Monday, the Great Lakes Maritime Task Force (GLMTF) recognized U.S. Rep. Lisa McClain, R-Mich., for her efforts advocating for the Great Lakes Navigation System and those who live and work on or near the Fourth Sea Coast. "It is an incredible honor to be recognized as Legislator of the Year by the Great Lakes Maritime…

11 Aug

Coast Guard commissions polar icebreaker Storis

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsIcebreakers, shipbuilding

(WASHINGTON) — The U.S. Coast Guard officially commissioned USCGC Storis (WAGB 21) on Sunday in Juneau, Alaska. The commissioning of this polar icebreaker marks a crucial step in President Trump’s directive to rebuild the Coast Guard, which will include historic investments through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. This vessel is the Coast Guard’s first polar icebreaker acquired in over…

04 Aug

Bollinger joins global trio in bid to build U.S. icebreakers

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsIcebreakers, shipbuilding

(LOCKPORT, La.) — Bollinger Shipyards, Rauma Shipyards, Seaspan Shipyards and Aker Arctic have announced the formation of a strategic partnership to deliver the lowest-risk, fastest delivery solution of Arctic security cutters (ASC) to the U.S. Coast Guard. This strategic partnership is an effort to strengthen the U.S. industrial base, expand America’s shipbuilding capacity, and equip American workers with the skills…

26 Jun

Healy bound for Arctic in support of scientific research

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsIcebreakers, U.S. Coast Guard

(SEATTLE) — The U.S. Coast Guard cutter Healy (WAGB 20) departed Seattle on Thursday, beginning its annual Arctic deployment. The crew aboard Healy, a 420-foot icebreaker, will support two distinct high-latitude missions to study the formation and movement of sea ice and the pathways followed by Atlantic and Pacific waters in the Arctic, and ocean circulation patterns in the East…

17 Jun

Davie to acquire Texas shipyards in icebreaker push

Professional Mariner StaffMaritime NewsIcebreakers, shipbuilding

(WASHINGTON) — Quebec-based Davie, an international builder of icebreakers and other specialized ships, has announced its intention to acquire shipbuilding assets in Galveston and Port Arthur from Gulf Copper & Manufacturing Corp., a Texas-based leader in ship repair, construction and marine services. The transaction is still subject to financial, legal and regulatory closing conditions, as well as land lease negotiations…