Newfoundland-based Genoa Design International has inked a deal with Seaspan Shipyards for the construction of Canada’s new polar icebreaker.

The deal will see Genoa provide 3D modelling and design services for the construction of the ship, which is being described as the future flagship of the Canadian Coast Guard’s icebreaking fleet.

The physical vessel will be built by Seaspan in British Columbia. It will replace the aging Louis St. Laurent, the current icebreaker, which has been in operation for nearly six decades.

Genoa says the new icebreaker will be an “incredibly complex ship,” giving the Coast Guard the ability to navigate and protect more than 162,000 km of Arctic coastline, and help sustain a year-long presence in the region.

CEO Gina Pecore estimates that the deal will result in $80 million in revenue for the company.

She calls it the biggest deal in the company’s history, noting that it will result in work security for at least 100 employees per year for the next several years.

Pecore says their design process will go into incredible detail. She says the finished digital ship will have everything down to the smallest details, such as wiring.

The new vessel is expected to be in the water by 2030.