CCGS John G . Diefenbaker CCGS " John G . Diefenbaker " is the name for a Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker that was initially expected to join the fleet in 2017 but will be delayed until 2021 – 2022 . Its namesake , John G . Diefenbaker , was Canada ' s 13th prime minister . It was Diefenbaker ' s government that founded the Canadian Coast Guard in 1962 . The ship is to be constructed by Seaspan Marine Corporation as part of the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy . Project history . Officially known as the Polar Class Icebreaker Project , the vessel ' s commissioned name was announced by Prime Minister Stephen Harper during a visit to Inuvik , Northwest Territories on 28 August 2008 . In early February 2011 , STX Canada Marine was awarded the contract to design the new icebreaker for the Canadian Coast Guard . Although the majority of the design work will take place in the Vancouver offices of STX Canada , the design team will also include the Finnish engineering company Aker Arctic . The work should be complete by the end of 2013 , after which the design will be provided to Seaspan / Vancouver Shipyards which will build the ship in Vancouver and deliver it to the Canadian Coast Guard in 2017 . The ship will have a crew of approximately 100 . It is estimated to be capable of carrying fuel and supplies to be self - sufficient for 270 days and be able of making constant progress through of ice . The $ 720 million project was announced in the 27 February 2008 federal budget as a replacement for the nation ' s largest icebreaker and the flagship of the coast guard , the CCGS " Louis S . St - Laurent " . The term " Polar Class " by the government and media is somewhat confusing as according to the International Association of Classification Societies , all vessels operating in sea ice must be assigned a Polar class , with PC 1 being capable of " Year - round operation in all Polar waters " In addition , the United States Coast Guard refers to its large icebreakers as s . Minister of Defence Peter MacKay has stated that the icebreaker will be built in Canada . According to the " Halifax Chronicle Herald " , Halifax Shipyards , located in MacKay ' s home province can expect some of the construction work . As of the award of the NSPS contracts , the Polar Icebreaker will now be built by Seaspan in British Columbia . Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Loyola Hearn announced the icebreaker will be homeported in his riding of St . John ' s , Newfoundland and Labrador . He also stated that the vessel will be larger than the CCGS " Louis S . St - Laurent " which it will be replacing . On Friday , May 30 , 2008 , Chuck Strahl the Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development wrote about the proposed icebreaker in a letter to the editor of the " Windsor Star " . Strahl wrote that the icebreaker would help protect the Arctic environment , and Canadian sovereignty . In addition he wrote that the Canadian Rangers would be expanded , and that a new Arctic research centre would be built in Resolute Bay . Michael Byers , the Canada Research chair in global politics and international law at UBC , stated that " this icebreaker and new money for mapping is something that Arctic experts like myself have been calling for , for some years now . I hope it ' s real . I hope it ' s not just an election promise . We need it and we need it right now . But I ' m still somewhat skeptical . This has been done before for cynical electoral politics . " The Canadian Coast Guard announced on 28 April 2010 that it is " currently in at the preliminary stages of conceptual design for the polar icebreaker . A “ Request for Proposals ” to undertake detailed design work will likely be ready mid - 2011 . Vessel construction is presently scheduled to begin in 2013 with completion of trials and final acceptance anticipated for late 2017 . " In October 2012 , a 1 : 25 scale model of " John G . Diefenbaker " was being evaluated in an ice tank . In May 2013 the " Vancouver Sun " reported that the Harper government acknowledged that both " Diefenbaker " and the Royal Canadian Navy ' s new Joint Support Ships faced a scheduling conflict . According to the " Vancouver Sun " , because both vessel were scheduled to be built in the same facility , the Harper government would have to choose which project had priority , and went first . The Canadian American Strategic Review argued that " Diefenbaker " better served protecting Canadian sovereignty than the Joint Support Ships , and should therefore get built first . However , on 11 October 2013 the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy ( NSPS ) Secretariat announced that the Joint Support Ships would be built first , followed by " John G . Diefenbaker " . This means that the new polar icebreaker is delayed and the Canadian Coast Guard will have to start necessary measures to keep " Louis S . St - Laurent " in service until 2021 – 2022 . Preliminary design . In the preliminary design published by STX Canada Marine in 2013 , " John G . Diefenbaker " has an approximate length of and beam of . Drawing of water , the icebreaker has a displacement of 23 , 700 metric tons . She is projected to have a core crew of 60 and accommodation for additional 40 project personnel . Her facilities include laboratories and modular mission spaces , a moon pool , general purpose cargo hold and garage , multiple cranes and a helideck and hangar for two medium - lift helicopters . In addition , she is capable of receiving and refueling larger helicopters . " John G . Diefenbaker " will be fitted with a fully integrated diesel - electric propulsion system consisting of five diesel generating sets ( 2×9 , 000kW , 3×8 , 000kW ) divided in two engine rooms and providing power for all shipboard consumers . Two propulsion alternatives are proposed for the preliminary design : a traditional three - shaft configuration with a centerline rudder and a hybrid propulsion system consisting of two wing shafts and an azimuth thruster in the middle for improved maneuverability . Regardless of the propulsion system , the shaft power of the new icebreaker is 36MW or 12MW per shaft , the same as for the Russian nuclear - powered icebreaker s " Taymyr " and " Vaygach " . Once built , " John G . Diefenbaker " will be the most powerful diesel - electric icebreaker in the world . For maneuvering at ports , she will also be fitted with a bow thruster . The new icebreaker will be able to achieve a maximum speed of over in open water and her normal cruising speed is . She is designed to break level ice with a thickness of and with a snow cover at over . Her operational range at 12 knots in Sea State 3 is projected to be over and she can operate in ice at full power for 25 to 30 days . The logistical endurance of the vessel is 270 days . " John G . Diefenbaker " will be classified by Lloyd ' s Register of Shipping . Her ice class is PC2 , the second highest ice class according to the International Association of Classification Societies ( IACS ) Polar class rules .