Keel laid for service ship for nuclear-powered icebreakers

Monday, 6 January 2025

When completed, the vessel will facilitate the refueling of nuclear reactors on the Project 22220 fleet of icebreakers - it will be able to load and unload fuel - and store used nuclear fuel until it can be transported for reprocessing.

The vessel is named in memory of Vladimir Vorobyov, who died aged 80 in 2020.

Yakov Antonov, acting CEO of Atomflot, said: "The contributions of Vladimir Vorobyov to the development of the nuclear icebreaker fleet are inestimable. He oversaw the construction of the lead universal nuclear icebreaker Arktika and other Project 22220 nuclear-powered icebreakers, and also was one of the designers of Project 10510 lead nuclear-powered vessel Rossiya. It is remarkable that a vessel designed to ensure the safe operation of modern nuclear icebreakers is named after the chief designer."

Alexander Konovalov, Director General of the Baltic Shipyard, said: "It is a great honour to build a ship named after Vladimir Vorobyov. He was dedicated to our plant and spent a lot of time there solving issues related to nuclear-powered ship construction. He was a true team member, committed to our common goal."

The contract was signed for the vessel between Atomflot and the Baltic Shipyard in 2023. When complete it will be 158.8 metres long, 26 metres wide, have a speed of 12 knots, a draft (its depth below the water line) of 7.5 metres and a displacement of 22,718 tonnes. It is planned to be commissioned in 2029.

The keel was affixed to the ship’s hull by Antonov, Konovalov and Andrey Buzinov, First Deputy CEO of United Shipbuilding Corporation, and Alexander Ryzhkov, Executive Director of Iceberg Central Design Bureau.

The development of the Northern Sea Route - allowing transport of goods from Europe to Asia off Russia's northern coast - has been made a priority by the country, with a fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers in the process of being built as part of Project 22220 - the first three 173-metre vessels, which can break through ice up to 3 metres thick, are already operating, with three more under construction.