Over RUB 2.1 billion rubles will be additionally provided to Roshydromet to finance the completion of “the North Pole” (Severny Polyus), an ice-resistant self-propelled platform (LSP). The order was signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, the government’s press office said.
The allocations will be available in 2021–2022.
The decision was made in pursuance of RF President’s order.
According to the statement, the federal financing will help complete the platform construction in 2022 and to hold mooring and sea trials.
The new non-freezing self-propelled platform will be able to operate both on ice and in water. This will allow Russian polar explorers to resume long-term drifting expeditions which were interrupted due to climate changes in the early 2000s, which led to a decrease in ice thickness in the Arctic.
The 83-m North Pole will allow accommodating more people than in traditional drifting stations and more equipment for scientific research. The results of such studies are important for understanding global processes of climate change, as well as for preparing and implementing plans for the development of the Arctic and ensuring the operation of the Northern Sea Route (NSR). The platform will be equipped with a helideck.
The document will be published.
The decision to build the platform was made by the Government of the Russian Federation in 2017. The model tests were held in the ice basin of AARI in August-September 2018. The construction began in 2019 and the platform was launched on 18 December 2020. In July 2021, Russian Gov’t allocated more than RUB 1 billion to complete the North Pole Arctic research vessel. That is taken into account by the new order of RF Government.
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