The repainted and renamed Storis icebreaker might reach its new homeport in Juneau within a couple of years, but it’s going to be a while before other new icebreakers in the U.S. Coast Guard’s fleet arrive in Alaska with the first of the new Polar Security Cutters unlikely to be ready until 2030, the leader of a U.S. House hearing announced Wednesday.
The first of the ships, originally announced in 2018, was supposed to be ready this year. Instead, the Juneau-bound icebreaker, originally built as the commercial ship Aiviq in 2012, is being acquired as a stopgap measure until the PSC vessels with more advanced polar region capabilities are ready. The ship, which will need upgrades to make it fit for Coast Guard service, is being renamed after a light icebreaker that was in service from 1942 to 2007 — including being stationed in Juneau from 1948 to 1957
An update about the status of the Coast Guard fleet — and unhappiness about the delays, especially as other countries such as Russia and China are outpacing the U.S. in icebreaker capacity — was provided by U.S. Rep. Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., chair of the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security, during a hearing Wednesday at the U.S. Capitol.
“The United States has struggled to maintain even a minimal Arctic presence,” he said. “The Coast Guard, our nation’s primary operator in the Arctic, is reliant on just one aging heavy icebreaker, the Polar Star, which is already well past its intended service life, and a single medium icebreaker, the Healy. This is unacceptable. A nation as powerful, resourceful, and innovative as ours must rise to the challenge and do better.”
Similar frustration has been expressed by other members of Congress, including Alaska’s delegation.
Russia has 55 icebreakers, including seven capable of traveling through ice up to two meters thick, and some that are nuclear powered and therefore don’t need refueling, according to the U.S. Coast Guard. China has four icebreakers with a fifth scheduled to launch next year.
Work on the Coast Guard’s first Polar Security Cutter is starting this year, the first of three scheduled to be built so far, but won’t be ready until 2030, according to a recent Congressional Budget Office report. The report also projects the price of the three ships at $5.1 billion, about 60% more than originally estimated by the Coast Guard.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
