Russian President believes it is necessary to approve the masterplan for the development of the Northern Sea Route for the period until 2035, according to the transcript of the videoconference meeting on the development of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation chaired by Vladimir Putin.
The masterplan is to “clearly identify the Northern Sea Route cargo traffic for the long-term perspective by specifying investment projects, shipping companies’ obligations in terms of volume – as this determines our infrastructure goals – as well as the size and composition of the icebreaker fleet”.
“It goes beyond icebreakers though… we should consider the types of vessels that will operate at the icebreakers’ tails. These 132 vessels that I mentioned must also be considered now. Our fleet upgrade plan also depends on these factors and the volume of shipments,” said the President.
According to Vladimir Putin the deadlines and volumes of icebreaker and Arctic-class vessel supplies need to be clearly determined. “We also need to consider the scope of associated hardware required for construction,” he said adding that “Considering this, we need to plan modernisation and expansion of production capacities for our shipbuilding facilities. It is also necessary for us to take action with respect to maintenance.”
The President emphasized that “the master plan for the development of the Northern Sea Route must include the construction and maintenance of a rescue fleet and the Emergencies Ministry’s comprehensive emergency and rescue centres”.
Besides, “it is necessary to identify the level and sources of funding for all the measures included in the masterplan. This funding must be very specific and broken down by year,” said Vladimir Putin.
The Northern Sea Route is a single transport system in the Russian Arctic sector. It stretches along the northern coasts of Russia across the seas of the Arctic Ocean (Kara, Laptev, East Siberian, Chukchi seas). The route links the European ports of Russia with the mouths of navigable rivers in Siberia and the Far East.
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