Seaspan cuts steel on a ‘Prototype block’ setting milestone for Polar Icebreaker Program

Photos: Seaspan

Seaspan Shipyards cut steel to build a ‘Prototype Block’ marking a critical step in Seaspan’s Polar Icebreaker Program. Seaspan is designing and building the first heavy Polar Icebreaker in Canada in more than 60 years.

The project that has been developed under Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy (NSS).

Before the full project begins, Seaspan is developing a Prototype Block to test the new systems, processes, people, and tools that are required to work with some of the very thick, specialized steel that is required to manufacture a heavy Polar Icebreaker. Some of this steel will be up to 60-mm thick, to enable the ship to safely navigate through the multi-year ice that is found in the Arctic.

The lessons learned from building the Prototype Block will be used to help improve the quality and efficiency of the process for designing and manufacturing the vessel when production begins in late 2024.

"Cutting steel on the Prototype Block is a key milestone for the Polar Icebreaker Program and demonstrates Seaspan’s capabilities across engineering, design, supply chain, planning and production," said Martin Edwards, chief program officer, Seaspan Shipyards. "The prototype is just one example of the team’s dedication to learning and continuous improvement, as we prepare to commence full rate construction."

Seaspan has already gained significant experience designing and building Polar Class vessels including three Offshore Fisheries Science Vessels which are now in service with the Canadian Coast Guard; an Offshore Oceanographic Science Vessel that is currently under construction at its Vancouver Shipyards location; and a class of sixteen Multi-Purpose Vessels (also Polar Class) that is currently in design.

The Polar Icebreaker will be a complex ship, designed to operate in the Arctic’s ice-covered waters, and will play a critical role in enabling the Canadian Coast Guard to transit and protect more than 162,000 km of Arctic coastline. The capabilities of the Polar Icebreaker will help sustain a year-round presence in Canada’s North in support of Indigenous Peoples and other northern communities, arctic sovereignty, high-Arctic science (including climate change research), and the ability to respond to major maritime emergencies including search and rescue.

The new Polar Icebreaker will be one of the world’s largest and most powerful conventional icebreakers. The ship will be the flagship vessel of the Canadian Coast Guard’s icebreaking fleet, with a critical mission of protecting Canada’s Arctic sovereignty.