Leader-class icebreaker of 120 MW being designed in Russia will provide escort services directly along the high-latitude routes that are 1.5 times shorter than the nearshore ones of the Northern Sea Route, IAA PortNews correspondent cites Andrei Smirnov, Deputy Director General of Fleet Operation at FSUE Atomflot, as saying at the 10th International Congress ‘Oil Terminal 2015’ in Saint-Petersburg.
According to him, this icebreaker will also be able to ensure direct passage of new gas carriers with commercial speed in the Ob Bay and the Bering Strait.
The icebreaker designed by Krylov State Research Center in cooperation CDB Iceberg is intended for round-the-year servicing of large capacity vessels (of over 100,000 t in deadweight and over 50 m in length) along the entire Northern Sea Route. Economically efficient speed of about 10 knots is to be available in 2-meter thick ice. All the materials and major equipment required for construction of the icebreaker can be supplied by domestic companies. The design ensures unification of major and auxiliary equipment with that of the multi-purpose nuclear-powered icebreaker Arktika of Project 22220 which is under construction today.
The conceptual design of the Leader-class icebreaker will be completed this year. In order to put the ship into operation in 2024, the development of the detailed design should be commenced in 2016 and take 3 years.
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