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Pierre Radisson News

17 Nov 2021

Heddle Shipyards Wins CCGS Amundsen Life Extension Contract

(Photo: Tatiana Pichugina / CC BY 2.0)

Heddle Shipyards said it has been awarded the vessel life extension of the Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker CCGS Amundsen.This week, the CCGS Amundsen will arrive at the Port Weller Dry Docks in Canada, the St. Catharines, Ontario, where it will stay through June 2022. The eight-month refit valued at approximately $12,000,000 CAD will sustain over 100 direct jobs and support subcontractors and suppliers across the Niagara Region, Ontario, and Canada.Heddle Shipyards noted it has also secured the dry docking of a seaway max laker at its Port Weller facility…

24 Sep 2020

Wärtsilä to Refit Canadian Coast Guard Icebreaker

Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker CCGS Amundsen (Photo: Wärtsilä)

Finland's Wärtsilä reports it has won a contract for the delivery and integration engineering of two retractable thrusters and a dynamic positioning (DP) system for the Canadian Coast Guard (CCG) icebreaker CCGS Amundsen.Wärtsilä, which booked the order in July, said it was able to meet the CCG’s requirements to fit the equipment in the existing space of the 98-meter-long Arctic Class 3 Medium Icebreaker, the only vessel in its class to be fitted with retractable thrusters and DP. The new thrusters will be integrated with the existing bow thruster, which is also a Wärtsilä product.

12 Dec 2019

Icebreaking Kicks Off on the Great Lakes

File photo: The US Coast Guard Cutter Katmai Bay, a 140-foot ice-breaking tug, escorts a motor vessel  through Lake Michigan near Lansing Shoal, in 2014. The cutter was operating as part of Operation Taconite, which is the icebreaking operation for the northern Great Lakes. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Daniel R. Michelson)

It's that time of year.The US Coast Guard announced it has commenced icebreaking operations in response to expanded ice growth in the commercial ports of western Lake Superior.Operation Taconite, launched by Coast Guard Sector Sault Sainte Marie on Wednesday, is one of two icebreaking operations that support the Great Lakes. It encompasses Lake Superior, St. Marys River, Straits of Mackinac, Georgian Bay, Green Bay, northern Lake Huron, and Lake Michigan.The authority for Coast Guard domestic icebreaking was created in 1936, by Executive Order 7521 signed by President Franklin D.

15 Apr 2019

CCG Provides Icebreaker Nod for Seathigor

Photo: Thordon Bearings

Thordon Bearings has received a Canadian Coast Guard contract to supply six award-winning SeaThigor shaft seals for retrofit installation to three purpose-built icebreakers.The 5,910grt CCGS Pierre Radisson, named after the 17th-century French fur trader and explorer, along with sisterships CCGS Amundsen and CCGS Des Groseilliers, will each be retrofitted with two SeaThigor forward seals during scheduled drydockings over the next year.The order, confirmed on the 1st of April,…

28 Aug 2018

Passenger Ship Runs Aground in the Arctic

A Russian-flagged passenger vessel that went aground in the Canadian Arctic last week has been refloated and is in stable condition.The 117-meter, 6,230 gt polar expedition cruise ship Akademik Ioffe had about 160 people on board when it ran aground in the western Gulf of Boothia on the morning of August 24.Canadian operator One Ocean Expeditions said it diverted Ioffe’s sister vessel, Akademik Sergey Vavilov, to assist. By August 25, all passengers disembarked by zodiac onto Sergey Vavilov for transport to Kugaaruk, Nunavut, before traveling to Edmonton, Alberta for flights home. No injuries were reported.Akademik Ioffe reportedly suffered some damage, but the severity is unknown.

14 Aug 2017

Canadian Coast Guard Expands Mapping Capability

Underwater image captured using an EM 712 multibeam echo sounder (Image: Kongsberg Maritime)

Kongsberg Maritime said the Canadian Coast Guard has chosen its high resolution EM 712 multibeam echo sounders for the medium icebreakers CCGS Pierre Radisson and the CCGS Des Groseilliers. Gathering critical hydrographic data can be a challenge in the Canadian Arctic. The innovative, retractable design of the new EM 712 echo sounder systems optimizes performance of the sounder when deployed and protects it when the vessel is breaking ice. When deployed, the high-resolution EM…

08 Jun 2017

Canadian Coast Guard Fleet Modernization Underway

ABB said it will modernize 10 out of 14 Medium Icebreakers and High Endurance Multi Task Canadian Coast Guard ships to extend operational life of the vessels by another 20 years. “For more than 75 years ABB has been working at the cutting edge of icebreaker technology and we are delighted to bring this expertise to these Canadian Coast Guard ships,” said Jyri Jusslin, Senior Vice President of ABB Global Marine & Ports Service. Design and work supply on first of the 10 vessels, CCGS Pierre Radisson, is already underway and will be completed in July 2017. From then on the remaining nine vessels will be completed in following order: CCGS Ann Harvey (2018), CCGS Des Groseilliers (2018), CCGS Sir William Alexander (2018), CCGS Martha L.

20 Apr 2016

ABB Breathes New Life into Canadian Icebreaker

Pierre Radisson (Photo: Canadian Coast Guard)

ABB will modernize a Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker, installing the latest hardware and software onboard the 38 year old Pierre Radisson. As part of the complete upgrade to the ship’s power distribution system, eight new drives will also be installed. The contract includes the option to modernize the other two Coast Guard ships, Des Groseilliers and Amundsen, both of which have clocked up more than 30 years of service. By attaching sensors to onboard equipment, ABB’s expert engineers can help diagnose problems on the vessel from shore.