Rosmorport's icebreakers have escorted recently 12 merchant ships in the Gulf of Finland, the Ice Operations HQ of Basin Administration "Baltic Sea Ports Authority" said.
Since the beginning of the 2015-2016 winter shipping and icebreaking season the icebreaking fleet assisted to 66 vessels.
As of 10:00, (Moscow Time), Jan. 14 2016: Neva Bay – ice buildup, 15-25-cm thick; Primorsk - on access channels: there is brash ice, ice in the harbor is 10 points of thickness of 25 cm; Ust-Luga – at river offshore anchorage ice is 10-15 cm thick, and there is no ice visible in the harbor and at berths; Vyborg / Vysotsk - on access channel to the port of Vysotsk – ice thickness is 10 to 15 cm, on access channel to Vysotsk, Vyborg - ice is 15-20-cm thick, on Saimaa Canal – 15-25-cm-thick ice; in Berkezund Strait - fast 15-25-cm-thick ice with an intensive ice buildup.
Currently, there are six icebreakers providing icebreaking assistance to ships: the Semen Dezhnev (Big Port St. Petersburg canal), the Yuri Lisyansky (the approach channel Port of Primorsk, escort of convoys, clearing the path, 24/7 stand-by), Kapitan M. Izmailov (approach channel to ports of Vyborg, Vysotsk and the Saimaa Canal, escort of ship convoys, clearing the path, stand-by), the Ivan Kruzenshtern (Big Port St. Petersburg, operations on the seaway), the Mudyug (Big Port of St. Petersburg seaway, icebreaking support from receiving buoy to the ice edge), the Kara (access path from Nerva island to the ports of Vyborg and Vysotsk).
There are three icebreakers in a stand-by mode, in operational reserve: the Kapitan Sorokin, the Ermak and the Kapitan Nikolaev.