Aker Arctic designs next generation Baltic icebreakers

Finland’s Aker Arctic Technology has signed a contract with the Swedish Maritime Administration (SMA) and the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency (FTIA) to develop a new series of icebreakers for difficult Baltic Sea ship escort operations. 

Aker Arctic will develop a design that is capable of assisting larger merchant ships, incorporates latest environmental technologies and is ready for future fossil-free fuels. The size of merchant vessels entering Finnish and Swedish ports is increasing, and increasing environmental requirements gradually limit the engine power of the vessels. The design process starts with research and evaluation on alternative icebreaker concepts. The new icebreaker type is required to be able to assist ships of 32m beam. Cost-effective operation, low life-cycle costs, the transition to fossil-free fuel by 2030 and the reduction of carbon dioxide emissions are also important goals.

“This new ship will represent a completely new generation of icebreakers. It will incorporate design, construction and operational experience from existing Baltic assistance icebreakers as well as our other icebreaker designs. As the operational requirements and environmental conditions are changing in the Bothnian Bay, we will work closely with the Finnish and Swedish operators to jointly develop a solution that best answers to the future icebreaking needs. With an operational lifetime spanning half a century, the new icebreaker must be designed to comply with future emission goals, " says Reko-Antti Suojanen, Managing Director of Aker Arctic .

A concept will be selected in March 2021 when the first cost estimate for the construction of the icebreaker is available. After this, the focus will be on the design details and construction specification, which will form the basis of the shipyard tendering process for the construction order once a decision to build the icebreakers is made.