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Polar Security Cutter program

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Rendering of the Polar Security Cutter design to be built by VT Halter Marine
Class overview
BuildersBollinger Shipyards
OperatorsUnited States Coast Guard
Preceded byPolar-class icebreaker
Cost
  • $1.038 billion (first vessel)
  • $794 million (second vessel)
  • $841 million (third vessel)[1]
  • $5.1 billion (CBO 2024 estimate for three vessels)[2]
In service
  • 2024 (planned)
  • 2030 (current estimate)[3]
Planned3
On order2[4]
General characteristics
Displacement22,900 long tons (23,300 t)
Length460 ft (140 m)
Beam88 ft (27 m)
Ice classPolar Class 2
Installed powerCaterpillar main diesel generators
PropulsionDiesel-electric; two ABB Azipod propulsion units and one shaft line
Endurance90 days
CapacityBerthing for 186 persons
Armament
Aviation facilitiesHelipad and hangar

The Polar Security Cutter Program is a program to recapitalize the United States Coast Guard's aging fleet of icebreakers, currently consisting of the heavy icebreaker USCGC Polar Star and the medium icebreaker USCGC Healy, with three new multi-mission vessels referred to as Polar Security Cutters (PSC). These heavy polar icebreakers will allow the USCG to perform its statutory missions in the Arctic as well as support the United States Antarctic Program with Operation Deep Freeze.[5][6]

The PSC program is managed by the USCG and United States Navy through an integrated program office. On 23 April 2019, Halter Marine Inc was awarded the contract for the detail design and construction of the lead PSC.[5] The contract option for the second PSC was exercised on 30 December 2021.[4] As of July 2023, the first vessel is expected to enter service in mid-to-late-2020s and will be named USCGC Polar Sentinel.[7][8][9]

In the future, the PSCs will be followed by the acquisition of three medium icebreakers referred to as Arctic Security Cutters (ASC).[6]

Project timeline

[edit]

In 2010, the High Latitude Mission Analysis Report identified a need for at least six new polar icebreakers, three of which must be what the USCG refers to as "heavy icebreakers".[6][note 1] In the same year, the USCG's only operational heavy icebreaker at the time, USCGC Polar Sea, was sidelined following engine failure.[10]

In 2012, the USCG launched a heavy polar icebreaker acquisition program and, in 2016, established an integrated program office with the US Navy to utilize the Navy's shipbuilding expertise for acquiring the new icebreakers.[11]

In February 2017, the USCG awarded five fixed-price contracts for heavy polar icebreaker design studies to Bollinger Shipyards, Italy's Fincantieri Marine Group, National Steel and Shipbuilding Company, Huntington Ingalls Industries, and Singapore's Halter Marine Inc .

In addition to developing heavy polar icebreaker designs with associated cost and schedule figures, the goal of these industry studies was to identify design and system approaches to reduce acquisition costs and accelerate production timelines.[12]

In April 2017, a draft system specification as part of a request for information (RFI) in which the USCG sought questions, comments and feedback related to technology risks, sustainability, producibility, and affordability of heavy polar icebreakers.[13] A draft request for proposal (RFP) was released in October 2017,[14] followed by the official request for proposal for the advance procurement and detail design for a heavy polar icebreaker with options for detail design and construction for up to three vessels in March 2018.[15]

In September 2018, the Coast Guard announced that the icebreakers would be called "Polar Security Cutters", that they would have the designation WMSP, and that the Coast Guard wanted the icebreakers to be capable of carrying deck-mounted weapons if needed.[16] The vessels will be homeported in Seattle, Washington.[17]

On 23 April 2019, the $745.9 million contract for the detail design and construction of the lead PSC was won by Halter Marine. The contract also included options for the construction of two additional PSCs that, if exercised, would bring the total acquisition cost to $1.9 billion excluding government-furnished equipment.[18] Halter Marine, one of the shipyards that had previously participated in the heavy polar icebreaker industry studies, reportedly beat out competing bids from at least Fincantieri Marine Group and Bollinger Shipyards.[19] In its press release on 7 May 2019, Halter Marine stated that it had teamed with Technology Associates, Inc. (TAI) and based its PSC design on the proposed German polar research vessel Polarstern II. Other companies involved included ABB and Trident Maritime Systems for propulsion system, Raytheon for command and control systems integration, Caterpillar for main engines, Jamestown Metal Marine for joiner package, and Bronswerk for the HVAC system.[20]

On 30 December 2021, the USCG exercised the $552.6 million option for the construction of the second PSC.[4][21]

Initially, Halter Marine anticipated that the lead ship would be delivered in summer 2024, with the second PSC in 2025, and the third vessel in late 2027. However, as of July 2023 the lead ship has been delayed and the delivery may not occur until 2028.[7] The Government Accountability Office has identified four primary factors contributing to delay in PSC design maturity: general lack of experience for designing and building icebreakers in the United States, the complexity of the PSC's design, significant changes from the original design, and impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.[22]

In November 2022, Bollinger Shipyards announced that it would buy VT Halter Marine and oversee the construction of the Polar Security Cutters.[23] On November 22, 2022, Bollinger Shipyards announced it had completed the acquisition of VT Halter Marine and ST Engineer Halter Marine Offshore. Construction of the Polar Security Cutters will still be completed in Pascagoula, MS at what will be called Bollinger Mississippi Shipbuilding.[24]

In August 2023, Bollinger Shipyards began steel cutting for eight "prototype modules" for the first Polar Security Cutter.[25]

On 7 May 2024, the Congressional Budget Office testified before the Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security of the Committee on Homeland Security. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that the total cost of three vessels would be $5.1 billion, about 60% more than the Coast Guard's estimate in March 2024, and the delivery of the first vessel would be in 2029.[2] In December 2024, it was estimated that the vessel would be operational in 2030 at the earliest.[3] When subcommittee chair Carlos A. Giménez asked why the Polar Security Cutter design was only 67% complete after five years of work, a Government Accountability Office witness explained that nothing like the Polar Security Cutter has been built in the United States in 50 years; American shipbuilders have no recent experience building large icebreakers. Coast Guard Vice Admiral Paul Thomas reminded the subcommittee that Halter Marine chose to base the PSC design upon the proposed Polarstern II design, rather than upon an existing Finnish icebreaker suggested by the Coast Guard. Because the Polarstern II has never been built, its design is necessarily incomplete.[26]

Design

[edit]

The Polar Security Cutters will be the largest icebreakers ever commissioned by the United States Coast Guard and will temporarily be the largest coast guard vessel in the world. With an overall length of 460 feet (140 m), beam of 88 feet (27 m), and a full load displacement of 22,900 long tons (23,300 t),[27] they will be bigger, wider and heavier than the current record-holder, the medium icebreaker USCGC Healy. The general design is reportedly based on the proposed German polar research vessel Polarstern II which has been modified and adapted to USCG requirements such as long open water transit from its home port to Antarctica.[28] The PSCs will have accommodation for up to 186 crew, scientists and other personnel, and endurance time of 90 days.[4]

Like most icebreakers built worldwide, the PSCs will have a diesel-electric power plant rated at over 45,200 hp (33,700 kW). The vessels' main diesel generators will be supplied by Caterpillar and the propulsion system consisting of two Azipod propulsion units and a third fixed shaft line by ABB and Trident Maritime Systems.[6][20][28] This will allow the PSCs to break ice with a thickness between 6 and 8 feet (1.8 and 2.4 m).[4] Designed according to the International Association of Classification Societies (IACS) Unified Requirements for Polar Class Ships, the PSCs will be strengthened to Polar Class 2 which is intended for vessels operating year-round in moderate multi-year ice conditions.[29][30]

The PSCs will feature a combat system derived from the Aegis Combat System.[28] The vessels have been said to include "space, weight, and electrical power set aside to carry offensive weapons".[31][32]

Ships in class

[edit]
Ship Hull Number Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Homeport Status
Polar Sentinel WMSP-21 Bollinger Shipyards 2027 (planned) 2028 (planned)[33] Seattle, Washington Under Contract[1][34]
TBD WMSP-22 Bollinger Shipyards Seattle, Washington Under Contract[1][35]
TBD WMSP-23 Bollinger Shipyards Seattle, Washington Authorized in National Defense Authorization Act for 2023 [36]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ In U.S. parlance, "heavy icebreakers" are icebreakers capable of breaking ice up to 6 feet (1.8 m) thick at a speed of 3 knots (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph).

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c "Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter (Polar Icebreaker) Program: Background and Issues for Congress". Congressional Research Service. 21 September 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  2. ^ a b "Testimony on the Cost of the Coast Guard's Polar Security Cutter". Congressional Budget Office. 30 April 2024. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  3. ^ a b "New U.S. Arctic icebreakers won't be ready until 2030, lawmakers say". Washington Times. 18 December 2024. Retrieved 21 December 2024.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Halter Marine is awarded the second Polar Security Cutter for the United States Coast Guard". ST Engineering. 29 December 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Polar Security Cutter". United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter (Polar Icebreaker) Program: Background and Issues for Congress, Congressional Research Service, retrieved 2 January 2021
  7. ^ a b Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter (Polar Icebreaker) Program: Background and Issues for Congress, Congressional Research Service, 10 July 2023, retrieved 13 July 2023
  8. ^ "Delivery Of The U.S. Coast Guard's New Heavy Icebreaker Has Been Delayed Yet Again". The Drive. 3 December 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2021.
  9. ^ "USCG's First Polar Security Cutter to be Named Polar Sentinel". MarineLink. 2022-02-24. Retrieved 2022-02-24.
  10. ^ "Engine troubles sideline Coast Guard Cutter Polar Sea". Coast Guard News. 25 June 2010. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  11. ^ "Coast Guard Acquisitions: Status of Coast Guard's Heavy Polar Icebreaker Acquisition". United States Government Accountability Office. 13 April 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  12. ^ "Acquisition update: U.S. Coast Guard awards multiple contracts for heavy polar icebreaker industry studies". United States Coast Guard. 22 February 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  13. ^ "Acquisition update: Coast Guard releases draft polar icebreaker specifications". United States Coast Guard. 4 April 2017.
  14. ^ "U.S. Navy releases draft request for proposal for Coast Guard icebreaker design, construction". United States Coast Guard. 19 October 2017. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  15. ^ "RFP released for Coast Guard's heavy polar icebreaker". United States Coast Guard. 5 March 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  16. ^ "Coast Guard Renames New Icebreaker Program 'Polar Security Cutter'". USNI News. 27 September 2018. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  17. ^ "U.S. Coast Guard Announces Homeport of Polar Security Cutter". SeaPower. 17 June 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
  18. ^ "Acquisition update: Coast Guard and Navy Integrated Program Office awards polar security cutter detail design and construction contract". United States Coast Guard. 23 April 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  19. ^ "U.S. Coast Guard Awards Contract for New Polar Class Icebreaker". High North News. 30 April 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  20. ^ a b "VT Halter Marine Awarded the USCG Polar Security Cutter" (PDF). VT Halter Marine. 7 May 2019. Retrieved 12 May 2019.
  21. ^ "VT Halter Wins Contract for Second USCG Polar Security Cutter". The Maritime Executive. 30 December 2021. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  22. ^ "Coast Guard Acquisitions: Polar Security Cutter Needs to Stabilize Design Before Starting Construction and Improve Schedule Oversight". United States Government Accountability Office. 27 July 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  23. ^ "UPDATED: Bollinger to Buy Halter Marine Shipyard, Oversee Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter Program". USNI News. 6 November 2022. Retrieved 6 November 2022.
  24. ^ "BOLLINGER SHIPYARDS COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF VT HALTER MARINE AND ST ENGINEERING HALTER MARINE OFFSHORE". Bollinger Shipyards. 22 November 2022. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
  25. ^ "Bollinger Cuts First Steel on Polar Security Cutter". USNI News. 9 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  26. ^ Ruskin, Liz (7 May 2024). "The U.S. was supposed to get keys to a new heavy icebreaker this year. Instead, construction is years late as costs soar". Alaska Public Media. Washington, DC. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  27. ^ "Polar Security Cutter". VT Halter. Archived from the original on 2 June 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2019.
  28. ^ a b c "VT Halter Marine Details Coast Guard Icebreaker Bid". USNI News. 8 May 2019. Retrieved 8 May 2019.
  29. ^ "USCG PSC Equals meaningful Polar Presence". MarineLink. 14 November 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  30. ^ "Requirements concerning POLAR CLASS". International Association of Classification Societies. April 2016. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  31. ^ "New Icebreaker Will Have Space, Power For Weapons: Coast Guard". Breaking Defence. 10 January 2018. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  32. ^ "Ice-Strengthened Cutters For The U.S. Coast Guard ?". Naval News. 6 February 2021. Retrieved 6 February 2021.
  33. ^ "GAO: Polar Security Cutter Design Won't Complete Until 2024, Delivery of First Hull Estimated in 2028". USNI News. 3 Aug 2023. Retrieved 4 Aug 2023.
  34. ^ "U.S. Government Shipbuilding (2020)". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  35. ^ "U.S. Government Shipbuilding (2020)". Retrieved 1 October 2022.
  36. ^ "ICYMI: Senate Passes 2023 Defense Bill with King-Backed Provisions to Invest in Maine Shipbuilding, Strengthen National Security and Support Jobs". Senator Angus King (I-ME). 16 December 2022. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
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