politics
Canadian Shipyard Secures Contract for Five Arctic Security Cutters as U.S. Icebreaker Fleet Expansion Concludes
Davie signs five Arctic Security Cutters, completing an 11-ship U.S. fleet expansion that will dramatically boost Coast Guard icebreaking capacity by 2028.
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Adm. Kevin E. Lunday, commandant of the Coast Guard. Canadian shipbuilder Davie has signed a contract for five Arctic Security Cutters for the U.S. Coast Guard, completing an 11-vessel program that marks a dramatic expansion of America’s icebreaking fleet amid renewed strategic focus on the Arctic.
The award caps a rapid turnaround for the Coast Guard, which just a year ago operated only two polar-capable vessels, the aging heavy icebreaker Polar Star and the medium icebreaker Healy.
Since then, the service has added the commercially acquired icebreaker Storis in mid-2025 and now has 11 Arctic Security Cutters (ASC) on order, with the first deliveries expected by 2028.
Built in Finland
The five cutters awarded to Davie complement a six-vessel order placed with Bollinger Shipyards in partnership with Finland’s Rauma Marine Constructions. Together, the deals complete the 11-ship ASC fleet now on order.
Under the Davie contract, the first two vessels will be built at the company’s Helsinki Shipyard in Finland, with the remaining three to be constructed at Davie’s facilities in Galveston and Port Arthur, Texas.
The move is expected to turn Texas into a central hub for U.S. icebreaker construction, as Washington seeks to rebuild domestic shipbuilding capacity.
The Bollinger-Rauma vessels will use Seaspan’s Multi-Purpose Icebreaker (MPI) design, developed with Finnish firm Aker Arctic under Canada’s National Shipbuilding Strategy.
Davie’s cutters will be based on its Multi-Purpose Polar Support (MPPS) design, of which seven vessels in various configurations have already been built. Both designs trace their origins to the early 2000s FESCO Sakhalin, a fourth-generation icebreaker concept that has since become a proven platform.
The 11 Arctic Security Cutters will operate alongside a larger Polar Security Cutter currently under construction in Pascagoula, Mississippi. That vessel, long delayed and now expected for delivery around 2030, was contracted nearly a decade ago.
The ASC program is set to bring new hulls into service before the heavy icebreaker is completed.
Dramatic expansion
Yesterday’s award effectively completes the current ASC program size, which, within a few years, will see the Coast Guard roughly quadruple the size of its icebreaker fleet.
“America has been an Arctic nation for over 150 years, and we’re finally acting like it under President Trump. 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,” said Secretary Kristi Noem.
“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 has framed the cutters as central to safeguarding U.S. sovereignty and maritime approaches in the High North. In a statement, the service said the Arctic Security Cutters would defend U.S. interests, secure key shipping routes, protect energy and mineral resources and counter foreign influence in the region.
A larger, more capable icebreaker fleet would enable the Coast Guard to control and defend Alaska’s maritime borders and Arctic approaches, it added.
Finnish expertise boosts US effort
The trilateral industrial cooperation between U.S., Canadian and Finnish shipbuilders stems from the ICE Pact strategic partnership launched under the Biden administration less than two years ago.
While the diplomatic groundwork was laid then, funding to move ahead with the cutters was secured under the Trump administration’s summer 2025 budget allocation.
Domestic construction of three Davie vessels in Texas, following initial builds in Helsinki, is intended to accelerate delivery while transferring expertise to U.S. yards.
Ensures the United States maintains its leadership as a maritime power in the Arctic
Officials say leveraging established Finnish icebreaker know-how will allow the Coast Guard to field the first cutters by 2028, while simultaneously supporting a broader revival of U.S. shipbuilding championed by President Trump.
“Awarding these contracts ensures the United States maintains its leadership as a maritime power in the Arctic,” said Adm. Kevin E. Lunday, commandant of the Coast Guard.
“Accelerating construction of these cutters will enable the Coast Guard to defend our northern border and approaches, while strengthening domestic shipbuilding and reinforcing the nation’s industrial base.”
The Finnish component of the program followed months of high-level political engagement. Finnish President Alexander Stubb traveled to the United States multiple times to discuss icebreaker cooperation with President Donald Trump.
Their talks resulted in a Memorandum of Understanding in October 2025, paving the way for orders at Finnish yards.
“The cooperation benefits both countries, Finland and the United States. The deal would not have been possible without President [Donald] Trump,” Stubb said at the time.
US icebreakers around Greenland
The revitalization of the Coast Guard’s icebreaking fleet comes amid a broader U.S. re-engagement in the Arctic.
Over the past five years, U.S. Navy and Coast Guard assets have increased their presence in the High North, including multiple nuclear-powered aircraft carrier deployments to Arctic and sub-Arctic waters and repeat carrier visits to Oslo.
It remains unclear where the 11 Arctic Security Cutters will ultimately be homeported. Analysts expect they will operate not only in the U.S. Arctic around Alaska but potentially in European Arctic waters, including near Greenland.
Such deployments would align with Washington’s heightened focus on the region and President Trump’s repeated emphasis on Greenland’s strategic importance.
With the ASC program now fully subscribed and additional heavy icebreaking capacity on the way, U.S. officials say the Coast Guard is poised to enter a new era in Arctic operations.
