Vanguard Magazine

Fleet renewals In the near future, Arctic shipping trends are seen as being associ- ated with fleet renewals and expansions rather than a Gold Rush type revolution. The main two areas of growth in Arctic shipping are the export of oil and gas from the Russian Arctic and the re- newal of the global icebreaking fleet – and LR continues to have a strong involvement in both. The new Noviy Port tankers (see article on page 29) represent the next step in a series of Russian destinational shipping projects supported by LR and follow the discovery of the Prirazlomnoye oilfield in Russia's Pechora Sea in 1989. The first Arctic tankers serving this development, which are dual classed with LR and the Russian Register, went into service last year. The average age of the icebreaker fleet is 28 years – an age pro- file that means a significant number of ships will need replacing or refitting in the near future. At the same time, polar science and research continues to grow – and new orders for Antarctic icebreakers are increasing. In fact the extent of LR's involvement with icebreakers designed and built to class and currently operating worldwide is significant. Of the estimated 127 icebreakers designed and built to class, 25% of the global fleet were built to LR class. Through this fleet, LR has built up a considerable breadth of knowledge about icebreaker design and the through-life perfor- mance of their structures and systems. What characterises these trends is a pushing of the boundaries – incremental steps in terms of technological capability and the harshness of operating environments. LR continues to be at the forefront of these advances, support- ing designers and owners in the development of designs and im- plementation of rules for ships operating in new areas. In the last five years, LR has been involved with: • The delivery of the two latest icebreaking supply vessels for the Russian Sakhalin service. • The acceptance into class of the Canadian Coast Guard's flag- ship icebreaker, CCGS Louis St Laurent. This represents a long- standing involvement with the ship which was built to class in 1966. • The approval of the design for the Canadian Coast Guard's new icebreaker (see article on page 26) to Polar Class 2 – the highest Polar Class that is yet to be approved globally. • The approval of the first dual-fuel LNG-powered icebreaker. • The approval of the fi icebreaker/Antarctic research vessel to be built in China. • The approval of the three latest icebreaking Arctic tankers in Korea. The Arctic business is growing more global. There has been a reinvigoration of the historic centres of excellence for icebreaker design and construction such as Finland and Russia and ship- building areas relatively new to the Arctic are taking up the chal- lenge. Recent Arctic ship projects LR is involved with in China and Korea highlight this move. Seven continents LR is currently involved in ice class ship projects designed, built or intended to operate from all of the world's seven continents. LR has undertaken a number of projects that support our clients and add value to their decision-making, namely: • Supporting specifi development for government projects. • Icebreaker life extension surveys and studies. LR's recent work on the development of ice class Rules and Regu- lations is also significant. Having been the first to fully adopt the new Polar Class Rules (IACS UR I), we have undertaken detailed analysis of these Rules to fi validate and then expand upon them – with particular focus on their application to icebreakers intended for use in more harsh and aggressive ice conditions. This has included the unique "Icebreaker(+)" notation, which enables a ship's ice strengthening to be developed based on a ra- tional evaluation of load scenarios. In effect it allows a bespoke level of ice strengthening to be specifi by the owner and incorporated into the ship's design. The new notation has been implemented on a number of recent designs. The fi ship, a new icebreaker for the Finnish government, is due for delivery at the end of 2015. LR is also the current International Association of Classifi So- cieties (IACS) representative on the IMO Polar Code working group. We have also recently released the fi dedicated set of Rules for Stern First Ice Class Ships, specific Fatigue Design Assessment Procedures for ships navigating in ice and Rules for Ice Load Structural Monitoring Systems. I InnovatIon www.vanguardcanada.com DECEMBER 2015/JANUARY 2016 33 A ship passing through polar waters "The extent of LR's involvement with icebreakers designed and built to class and currently operating worldwide is significant."

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