As President Donald Trump continues to argue that the United States needs to control Greenland, Washington has moved to strengthen its presence in the Arctic by ordering new icebreakers, turning to Finland for designs and construction expertise as the region becomes more accessible and strategically contested.
Finland’s Icebreaker Industry At The Center
Inside Aker Arctic Technology’s ice laboratory in Helsinki, scale models of icebreakers are tested in a 70-metre simulation tank where vessels push through solid ice. Engineers assess hull shape, structural strength, and engine power to ensure ships can operate in extreme conditions.
Finland has become the global leader in icebreaker design out of necessity. All of the country’s ports can freeze during winter, and about 97% of its imports arrive by sea. Finnish companies have designed about 80% of the world’s operational icebreakers, with roughly 60% built in Finnish shipyards.
Maunu Visuri, president and chief executive of state-owned operator Arctia, said icebreakers are essential to keeping Finland’s economy functioning during winter months, acting as pathfinders for cargo vessels. He described Finland as effectively an island during the cold season.
US Orders And Waived Build Rules
That expertise prompted Trump to announce in October that the US would order four icebreakers from Finland for the US Coast Guard. An additional seven vessels, designated Arctic Security Cutters, are planned to be built in the US using Finnish designs and technical support.
Under US law, naval and coastguard vessels are normally required to be built domestically, but Trump waived that requirement on national security grounds. He cited what he described as aggressive military activity and economic pressure from Russia and China.
Contracts And Construction Plans
The first contracts were awarded on 29 December. Rauma Marine Constructions will build two icebreakers for the US Coast Guard at its shipyard in the Finnish port of Rauma, with the first delivery expected in 2028.
Four more vessels will be constructed in Louisiana. All six diesel-electric ships will use designs developed by Aker Arctic Technology in partnership with Canadian firm Seaspan.
Catching Up In A Crowded Arctic
The US expansion comes as it seeks to narrow the gap with Russia, which operates around 40 icebreakers, including eight nuclear-powered vessels. The US currently has three in service.
China operates about five polar-capable ships. While they do not meet the technical definition of icebreakers, analysts say the fleet is growing and increasingly active in Arctic waters. Retired US Navy officer and icebreaker specialist Peter Rybski said Chinese research vessels have operated in areas between Alaska and eastern Russia that the US considers part of its exclusive economic zone.
Climate Change And Strategic Access
Reduced ice coverage linked to climate change has made Arctic routes more navigable, opening potential shipping corridors between Asia and Europe either along Russia’s coast or north of Alaska and Canada, passing Greenland. The same conditions have increased access to oil and gas reserves beneath Arctic waters.
Rybski said the region now sees more traffic tied to energy exploration and emerging transit routes.
Icebreakers As Power Projection
Beyond logistics, analysts say icebreakers carry symbolic and strategic weight. Lin Mortensgaard of the Danish Institute of International Studies said conventional naval power has limits in the central Arctic Ocean, where aircraft carriers cannot operate.
She said icebreakers are the primary means for states to demonstrate Arctic capability and presence, shaping how countries signal their role in the region.
Finland’s Shipyards And Experience
At Helsinki Shipyard, now owned by Canada’s Davie, workers are building Polarmax, a heavy-duty Arctic vessel for the Canadian Coast Guard. The yard has produced about half of the world’s icebreakers and hopes to secure additional US contracts.
Managing director Kim Salmi said changing geopolitical conditions and fleet expansion by Russia and China have pushed Western allies to reassess the balance of power in the Arctic.
Finnish builders can complete complex icebreakers in about two and a half to three years, a pace attributed to streamlined production and decades of specialization. Visuri said Finland’s continuous cycle of design, operation, and construction has made it a global hub for icebreaker development.
Featured image credits: U.S. Geological Survey via rawpixel
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