Russia Failed To Build Two Icebreakers For 18.5 Billion Rubles Because Of Sanctions
- 15.08.2025, 15:27
- 2,672
Such courts have not been created in the Russian Federation before.
"Rosmorport has terminated its contract with the Onezhsky Shipbuilding Plant (SSZ), which it owns, for the construction of two innovative icebreakers worth a total of 18.5 billion rubles, according to Vedomosti. The agreement, concluded in 2021, was terminated on July 10. It is about auxiliary 95-meter icebreakers with a capacity of 12-14 MW of Icebreaker7 class, capable of moving in solid ice up to 1.5 meters thick using both diesel fuel and liquefied natural gas. Such vessels have never been built in Russia before.
The icebreakers were intended for year-round operation in the Baltic, White and Barents Seas, as well as in the Arctic Ocean in summer and fall. It was planned to hand them over to the customer in 2024 in the Big Port of St. Petersburg, then the deadline was postponed to 2026, but the construction was not actually carried out. The reason was sanctions. Initially, the vessels were supposed to be built under subcontract at the Turkish Kuzey Star Shipyard, but the agreements were disrupted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Despite the lack of work, Rosmorport paid an advance of 9.27 billion rubles to the Shipyard. The shipyard was obliged to return these funds within five working days after the contract was terminated.
The icebreakers were designed by the Baltsudoproekt Central Design Bureau, which is part of the Krylov State Research Center. According to the publication's source, foreign components were to be used for the construction, including the Azipod propeller steering column by French ABB and the main diesel generator by Finnish Wartsila. It is impossible to buy them because of sanctions, in this regard, the ships will have to be redesigned, he noted.
Now Rosmorport has 23 line and 11 auxiliary diesel-electric icebreakers at its disposal. The company's demand until 2030 is estimated at 10 new vessels.
Total, according to the Ministry of Transport, the Russian icebreaker fleet includes 41 vessels, including 34 diesel-electric and seven nuclear-powered. The most powerful of these, at 60 MW each, are being built at the Baltic Shipyard, owned by the United Shipbuilding Corporation. Recently, OSK started layoffs due to the lack of money for fleet modernization. In particular, the employees of the Vympel Shipyard in Rybinsk, Yaroslavl Region, and the staff of the Khabarovsk Shipyard have been made redundant.
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