US Coast Guard Awards Contracts to Build 6 Arctic Icebreakers

In July, Trump signed into law the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which has provided $8.6 billion for deploying the USCG’s icebreaker fleet in the Arctic.

The Coast Guard Cutter USCGC Polar Star breaks through Antarctic sea ice near the National Science Foundation's McMurdo Station on Jan. 15, 2017. U.S. Coast Guard photo by Chief Petty Officer David Mosley/Public Domain

The U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) awarded two contracts to construct up to six Arctic Security Cutter (ASC) icebreakers to increase regional mobility and assert dominance, the agency said in a Dec. 29 statement.

“The Arctic Security Cutters will defend U.S. sovereignty, secure critical shipping lanes, protect energy and mineral resources, and counter our adversaries’ presence in the Arctic region,” the USCG said, adding that this was a “major step forward for America’s national security.”