MSV Fennica icebreaker

MS Fennica is a Finnish icebreaking vessel owned and operated by Arctia Ltd (a Finnish state-owned company). "MSV" stands for "multipurpose supply vessel". One of Finland's icebreaker ships, Fennica is a platform supply vessel and the first-ever Finnish ice-breaker. It was specifically designed for escorting marine vessels in Baltic Sea during winter and for assisting offshore construction projects through the rest of the year.

The vessel (IMO number 9043615) is currently Finland-flagged (MMSI 230245000) and registered in Helsinki.

With the same design is MSV Nordica and similarly-designed is MSV Botnica.

The list of other Finnish icebreakers also includes (in brackets - year built): Polaris (2016), Kontio (1987), Otso (1986), Sampo (1960), Urho (1975), Sisu (1976).

Det Norske Veritas classified the ship as "1A1 POLAR-10 Icebreaker Tug Supply Vessel". Ice class POLAR-10 signifies a hull strengthened for unassisted operations in the polar regions (the Arctic Ocean and Antarctica). According to specifications, the ship's ice-breaking capacity is up to 1 m (3 ft) in conditions including glacial ice floes.

As an icebreaker, the ship can perform repeated ramming of ice ridges. On July 3, 2015, the ship was en route to the Chukchi Sea to support drilling operations of Shell Oil Company. However, after discovering a hull hole (99 cm long, 5 cm wide), Fennica returned to Dutch Harbor (Amaknak Island, Alaska) and in the following week entered dry-dock in Portland OR for repairs.

Fennica vessel details and technology

For better maneuverability, the ship's hull at the bow is wider in comparison to its stern section. The hull also features an explosion-welded ice belt (made of stainless steel) for reducing friction and protecting the steel plates from abrasion.

To assist offshore constructions, the ship is equipped with a Hydralift heavy-lift crane. The crane's capacity is up to 30 tons (with max radius 11 m / 36 ft) or 15 tons (max radius 20 m / 66 ft). The ship additionally has a MacGregor crane with lifting capacity 5 tons (max radius 14 m / 46 ft) or 1,5 tons (max radius 30 m / 98 ft).

Before the 2012 refit, Fennica also had a helicopter hangar (now replaced with a helipad). The ship's equipment also includes a 120-ton A-frame structure (for ploughs and trenching machines), Aquamaster-Rauma anchor, hydraulic towing winch and a stern notch (for towing smaller vessels through ice fields).

In late November 2014, Finland's "Cabinet Committee on Economic Policy" released an official statement regarding the country's aging icebreaking fleet. According to the statement, Arctia Shipping's old fleet will be fully replaced with new icebreakers by the year 2029. The project's overall cost is approx EURO 1 billion. The new vessels (like Polaris) must be multipurpose icebreakers (including for Arctic oil explorations).

• The vessel has 1 Dining Room, Sauna Room, no swimming pool, no elevator, 1 helipad (Helideck).
• Max Draught: 8,5 m (28 ft)
• DWT Deadweight tonnage: 1650-4800 tons
• Displacement tonnage: 12800 tons
• Bollard pull (emergency towing capacity) 234 tons
• Power: 2x Wartsila 16V32D diesel engines (each 6 MW power output), 2x Wartsila 12V32D diesel engines (each 4,5 MW output)
• Propulsion: Diesel-electric, 2x Aquamaster azimuth thrusters (ABB Stromberg motors, each 7,5 MW output, with ducted fixed-pitch propellers); 3x Brunvoll bow thrusters (each 1,15 MW output, with variable-pitch propellers).

Note: In the case of poor AIS coverage, tracking the vessel's current location will be impossible. You can see CruiseMapper's list of all icebreakers and ice-breaking research ships in the "itinerary" section of our Icebreakers hub. All states and their fleets are listed there.