Nizhny Novgorod, Russia based Krasnoye Sormovo shipyard (a company of the United Shipbuilding Corporation) says it has laid down the second sea/river cruise ship of Project 00840 Karelia. The ship named Mikhail Zhvanetsky is the second one in the series of three units to be built at the shipyard under the programme of RF Government on modernization of the river fleet.
“The cruise fleet of our country has been in need of renewal for more than a year, but now, thanks to the allocations by the Russian government, we commence the serial construction of tourist ships of the new generation. I am sure that the shipbuilders of the Krasnoye Sormovo shipyard and the designers of the Vympel Design Bureau will cope with the task, and we will begin large-scale replacement of passenger ships built by the COMECON member states and sailing along the Volga for decades,” said Alexey Rakhmanov, General Director of USC.
The liners of Kerelia design will be operated in the Black, Azov, Caspian and White seas, in the Gulf of Finland and on inland water ways. The first ship is to be delivered to the customer in 2025, the second and the third ones – in 2026.
The ship will have a capacity of 180 passengers. There will be 88 cabins including 2 cabins for people with disabilities.
Krasnoye Sormovo PJSC is one of the oldest shipbuilding companies in Russia, founded in 1849. Throughout the 75-year period, more than three hundred submarines and rescue vehicles including 25 nuclear ones have been built and modernized by Krasnoye Sormovo shipyard. Today, Krasnoye Sormovo builds vessels of commercial fleet meeting the requirements of international conventions on reliability and safety.
United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC OJSC) is the largest shipbuilding company in Russia. It was set up in 2007 with 100% federal ownership. The holding comprises about 40 companies and organizations (major shipbuilding and shiprepairing companies as well as leading design bureaus). Currently, USC consolidates the bulk of the domestic shipbuilding complex. The Russian market is the main focus of the state corporation though it also exports its products to 20 countries worldwide.