Russia awards icebreaker contracts

Friday, 9 May 2014

The Baltiysky Zavod shipyard is to build Russia's next two LK-60 nuclear icebreakers after being the sole company to submit an acceptable tender in an open competition.

Rosatomflot's view of how the LK-60 will clear a way for shipping (Image: Rosatomflot)

Baltiysky Zavod is already working on the first LK-60, the Arctica, for which the keel was laid in November 2013. The tender competition announced by Rosatom in January 2013 called for the second and third LK-60s to be completed in 2019 and 2020 respectively. At the time, the cost of the second LK-60 was expected to be RUB 42 billion ($1.2 billion), with the third expected to cost slightly more to allow for inflation, at RUB 44 billion ($1.3 billion).

Rosatom has now declared Baltiysky Zavod's bid to be the sole entry consistent with the requirements of the tender and therefore the winner of the contract, according to a statement released by the shipyard.

The three LK-60 icebreakers, including the Arctica, come under Rosatom's Project 22220. Described as the largest and most powerful icebreaker in the world, the Arctica will be equipped with two 175 MW RITM-200 reactor units delivering about 60 MWe of power to the ship's propellers. It is due to be completed by the end of December 2017. The 173m-long vessel will be able to sail through ice up to 3m thick, making it suitable for operation in Arctic waters and in the mouths of Russia's most northerly rivers. Their suitability for use in both the open sea and in rivers has led to the LK-60 type being dubbed "universal" icebreakers.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News