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Decline in offshore operations hits major icebreaker operator

Xinhua, September 2, 2016 Adjust font size:

Due to the shrinking world market of off-shore services, Finnish state-owned icebreaker operator Arctia is commencing talks with the staff on layoffs, the company said on Thursday.

The layoff talks will concern the whole staff of 270. The duration of the layoff has been given as three months.

One major setback in the global market was the decision by Shell to stop its oil drilling probes off Alaska last year.

Fennica, a multipurpose ship from Arctia fleet, got negative publicity in July 2015 when it grounded in Alaska when assisting in oil drilling probes. U.S. investigation later showed the cause was the usage of inaccurate nautical charts dating back to 1935 and no fault was committed by the Finnish ship operator.

The Arctia fleet includes four multipurpose ships -- three traditional icebreakers and one oil spill control icebreaker. Besides keeping shipping routes clear of ice in the Baltic Sea during the winter, Arctia ships have been assisting in Arctic oil drilling operations.

Originally owned by a government agency, the Finnish icebreakers have been involved in international service business particularly in oil searching probes. The company Arctia was established in 2010, and it is now the only high seas ice breaker operator in Finland.

This summer, the world's first LNG-powered icebreaker Polaris joined Arctia fleet. Endit