Canada’s Fednav Orders New Icebreaker

Fednav’s, MV Arctic

Fednav, the world’s largest operator of ice-classed vessels and Canada’s leading deep-sea bulk transporter, announced Tuesday that it has placed an order for a new ice-breaking bulk carrier after securing a long-term contract with Canadian Royalties, a mining company based in Quebec.

The two companies said Tuesday that they have signed a long-term contract which provides for the transportation of nickel and copper concentrates from Canadian Royalties’ Nunavik Nickel Project in northern Quebec to customers in Europe, as well as the import from Europe of mine supplies and equipment.

As a result, Fednav’s Senior Vice-President, speaking on Monday at the 5th Arctic Shipping North America Conference, said that the company has placed an order for the design and construction of a new 25,000 dwt ice-breaking bulk carrier with Sumitomo Corporation and Universal Shipbuilding Corporation of Japan.

Fednav already owns and operates two of the world’s most powerful ice-breaking commercial vessels, the MV Arctic and the MV Umiak I.

The new vessel will be built to Polar Class 4 requirements, meaning the vessel will be able to operate year-round in first-year ice, and will be built at Universal’s Tsu shipyard and classed by Det Norske Veritas.

The scheduled delivery date of the newbuild is expected in December 2013.

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