Washington: The US Coast Guard has awarded Davie Defence a contract for five Arctic Security Cutters (ASCs), completing the agreement laid out in an October Memorandum of Understanding between the White House and Finland, the service announced February 11.
“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 of Homeland Security Kristi Noem in the statement. “Revitalising the US Coast Guard’s icebreaking capabilities is crucial for our security and prosperity, and today’s announcement is an important step in that direction.”
Davie Defence, the American sister company to Canada’s Davie, will build three of the medium-sized icebreakers domestically and two of them at Helsinki Shipyard in Finland, per the announcement.
“We can’t wait to get started on delivering mission-ready cutters to our valued US Coast Guard partner,” Davie Defence CEO Kai Skvarla said in a company statement. “By anchoring construction in Texas, while drawing on Helsinki Shipyard’s proven icebreaker expertise, we can deliver the ASCs to meet the Coast Guard’s operational needs in the world’s harshest environments.”
This announcement follows two December contract awards for up to six ASCs: one to Rauma Marine Constructions Oy in Finland for up to two ships and one to Bollinger Shipyards in Louisiana for up to four.
The Memorandum of Understanding signed in October laid out an agreement for four ships to be built in Finland and seven in the US.
“The cooperation benefits both countries, Finland and the United States. The deal would not have been possible without President [Donald] Trump,” Finnish President Alexander Stubb said in a post on X at the time.
According to the formal announcements from the Coast Guard, the first icebreakers are set to be delivered in 2028.
Davie in September invested $1 billion into Gulf Copper shipyard, a Texas company that the Canadian shipbuilder purchased last summer. At the time, Davie said it hopes to transform the facilities into what it’s calling an “American Icebreaker Factory,” with its eyes primarily on the US Coast Guard’s pending competition for the Arctic Security Cutter programme. Davie’s parent company, INOCEA Group, also acquired shipbuilding assets in Galveston and Port Arthur in 2025, according to Coast Guard announcement.
Cofounder of INOCEA Group, Alex Vicefield said in the statement from Davie Defence: “Our focus is on disciplined execution for the US Coast Guard — combining proven designs with Helsinki Shipyard’s world-leading expertise helping re-establish world-class shipbuilding capability in Texas, where we will deliver cutters on time and on budget.”
