It was recently announced that COSCO will build 11 new 19,000 TEU containerships for $1.5 billion, with expected delivery in 2018 (if I remember correctly). It has also been reported that for the Coast Guard to build a new ice breaker it will take 10 years and cost $1 billion. I understand the hulls of a containership and ice breakers are different, and the ice breaker would need some high tech equipment due to where it operates and the fact that it is a military vessel, but the timelines and costs seem way out of whack. What gives?
There several icebreaker threads here, this is one of the more recent.
Forum member “tups” is our go-to for icebreaker info.