Viktor Chernomyrdin (icebreaker)

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Rendering of Viktor Chernomyrdin
Rendering of Viktor Chernomyrdin
History
Name: Viktor Chernomyrdin
Namesake: Viktor Chernomyrdin
Owner: Rosmorport[1]
Ordered: 2 December 2011[1]
Builder: Baltic Shipyard, St. Petersburg, Russia
Cost: RUB 7.94 billion
200 million euro[2]
Laid down: 10 October 2012[3]
In service: December 2015 (initial)[2]
2018 (current estimate)[4]
Identification: IMO number: 9658630
Status: Under construction
General characteristics
Type: Icebreaker
Displacement: Approximately 22,000 tonnes
Length: 146.8 m (482 ft)
Beam: 29 m (95 ft) (maximum)
28.5 m (94 ft) (waterline)
Draft: 8.5–9.5 m (28–31 ft)
Ice class: RMRS Icebreaker8
Installed power: Four diesel engines (4 × 8,700 kW)
Propulsion: Diesel-electric; centerline shaft (10 MW) and two ABB Azipod VI1600 thrusters (2 × 7.5 MW)
Speed: 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph) (maximum)
2 knots (3.7 km/h; 2.3 mph) in 2 m (7 ft) ice
Endurance: 60 days
Capacity: Accommodation for 90 special personnel
Crew: 38
Aviation facilities: Two helipads and hangar for two helicopters

Viktor Chernomyrdin is a new Russian icebreaker, also referred to as Project 22600 or LK-25, currently under construction at Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg. When completed, she will be the largest diesel-powered icebreaker in the world.

The new icebreaker was initially expected to enter service in late 2015, but the project is now estimated to be 24 to 28 months behind schedule and the ship is expected to enter service in 2018.[4]

Development and construction

The development of the icebreaker designated as LK-25 dates back to the first long-term plans for rebuilding the Russian icebreaker fleet after the dissolution of the Soviet Union. As part of these plans that were published in the early 1990s, a number of both conventional and nuclear-powered icebreaker designs were proposed, ranging from 7-megawatt auxiliary icebreakers (LK-7) operating near large ports to 110-megawatt nuclear icebreakers (LK-110N) capable of breaking ice up to 3.5 metres (11 ft) thick. Of these, the 25-megawatt line icebreakers (LK-25) were intended to escort merchant ships and lead convoys through freezing seas, and operate as auxiliary ships in complex convoys along the Northern Sea Route. During the summer season, they could also escort ships independently over shallow waters in the Arctic.[5]

The current LK-25 design, called "Project 22600", was produced by Russian Petrobalt Design Bureau in co-operation with the Finnish Aker Arctic.[3][6] On 2 December 2011, Rosmorport signed a contract with the St. Petersburg-based Baltic Shipyard, worth RUB 7.5 billion of which 30% was paid in advance, for the construction of the 25-megawatt line icebreaker.[1] The keel-laying ceremony, attended by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, was held on 10 October 2012. The construction of the 2,500-ton deckhouse was subcontracted to Nordic Yards in Germany.[2] The ship was initially expected to enter service in the Gulf of Finland in December 2015[2] and replace two older icebreakers, the 1974-built Yermak and the 1977-built Kapitan Sorokin.[7]

However, in November 2014 it was reported that the construction of the icebreaker had been suspended in December 2013 due to problems with the design — the vessel was reportedly 2,500 tons overweight and the draft had increased by 0.7 metres (2.3 ft) — and the delivery had been delayed by 24 to 28 months until July 2017.[8] As a result, the shipyard signed a new contract with another design bureau, Vympel, and cancelled the contract for the construction of the superstructure with Nordic Yards.[9][10] On 26 January 2016, it was reported that an additional RUB 1 billion of funding is required to complete the icebreaker due to the decline of the Russian ruble following the financial crisis.[11] In addition, on 19 February 2016 it was reported that, due to the sanctions against Russia, the United Shipbuilding Corporation is concerned about the shipyard's ability to deliver the icebreaker in 2017.[12][13] While in April 2016 a representative of the United Shipbuilding Corporation claimed that the icebreaker would be delivered "this year" and that the value of the contract has not changed,[14] in May 2016 a representative of Rosmorport stated that "2018 is a reality".[4]

The new icebreaker will be named Viktor Chernomyrdin[15] after Viktor Chernomyrdin (1938–2010), the founder and first chairman of Gazprom and the longest serving Prime Minister of Russia (1992–1998). In addition, he was the Acting President of Russia for a day in 1996 when President Boris Yeltsin underwent heart surgery.

Description

General characteristics

Viktor Chernomyrdin will be 146.8 metres (482 ft) long overall and have a maximum moulded beam of 29 metres (95 ft). When ballasted to the maximum draught of 9.5 metres (31 ft), her displacement is approximately 22,000 tonnes. However, the vessel can also operate at a reduced draught of 8.5 metres (28 ft) in shallow waters.[16] These main dimensions make Viktor Chernomyrdin the largest diesel-powered icebreaker in the world, second only to the Russian nuclear-powered icebreakers.[2]

The new icebreaker will have a crew of 38 and additional accommodation for 90 special personnel. In addition to normal icebreaking and escorting tasks, Viktor Chernomyrdin will be equipped for emergency towing and rescue operations in open water, oil spill response, offshore and underwater construction projects, and fire fighting. To support technical work, the ship can be fitted with a 150-ton deck crane. The large superstructure will contain over 300 square metres (3,200 sq ft) of scientific laboratory space and a modular "diving complex" consisting of a diving chamber and other support systems built in standard-sized containers can be carried on the deck. An outboard lift will allow persons with limited physical abilities as well as compact equipment to be lowered directly to the sea ice.[3] The icebreaker will have a small helipad in the bow for Kamov Ka-32 and Eurocopter EC225 Super Puma, and a larger helicopter deck and hangar capable of accommodating two heavier Mil Mi-8 and AgustaWestland AW101 in the aft.[16]

Power and propulsion

Viktor Chernomyrdin will have a fully integrated diesel-electric propulsion system. Built according to the power plant principle, the four medium-speed diesel generating sets with an output of 8,700 kW (11,700 hp) each will produce electricity for all shipboard consumers from propulsion motors to hotel functions such as lighting and air conditioning. The propulsion system, developed by Aker Arctic and provided by ABB, will consist of two Azipod VI1600 propulsion units (2 × 7.5 MW)[17] and one centerline propeller shaft coupled to a fixed pitch propeller (10 MW). While in terms of propulsion power the 25-megawatt Russian icebreaker is slightly less powerful than the Polar-class icebreakers operated by the United States Coast Guard, the most powerful diesel-powered icebreakers ever built, Viktor Chernomyrdin can operate in more difficult ice conditions. She is designed to be a double acting ship that is capable of proceeding continuously in compact ice field up to 2 metres (7 ft) thick with a 20-centimetre (8 in) snow cover at 2 knots (3.7 km/h; 2.3 mph) in both directions. In addition, the azimuth thrusters will give the vessel superior maneuverability to traditional icebreakers with shaftlines and rudders. The vessel is also fitted with an air-bubbling system that reduces friction between the hull and ice.[18] In open water, the icebreaker will have a maximum speed of 17 knots (31 km/h; 20 mph).[3][16][19]

Viktor Chernomyrdin will be classified by the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping (RMRS).[16] The ice class, Icebreaker8, allows the new icebreaker to operate in Arctic seas with ice thickness up to 3 metres (10 ft). In addition, she has to be capable of continuous operations in compact ice field up to 2 metres (7 ft) in thickness.[20] The icebreaker will be capable of operating in temperatures as low as −35 °C (−31 °F) for 60 days.[16]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 List of Vessels Being Constructed for FSUE “Rosmorport”. Rosmorport. Retrieved 2013-04-07.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Nordic Yards to build 2,500 t deckhouse for icebreaker. MarineLog, 12 August 2013. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 First Aker Arctic multi-screw DAS hybrid propulsion application. Arctic Passion News, March 2013. Retrieved 2013-04-07.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Rosmorport expects the delivery of diesel-electric icebreaker LK-25 in 2018. PortNews, 17 May 2016. Retrieved 2015-10-02.
  5. ↑ Tsoy, L. G. et al. Perspective types of Arctic icebreakers and their principal characteristics. Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Port and Ocean Engineering under Arctic Conditions, 1995 (POAC'95). Pages 13–26.
  6. ↑ Завершенные проекты. Petrobalt Design Bureau. Retrieved 2013-04-12.
  7. ↑ Baltic Shipyard lays down 25MW icebreaker for Rosmorport . Portnews.ru, 10 October 2012. Retrieved 2013-04-12.
  8. ↑ Доклад о финансово - хозяйственной деятельности федерального государственного унитарного предприятия «Росморпорт» за 2014 год. Retrieved 2015-05-02.
  9. ↑ Yard delays delivery of icebreaker. Barents Observer, 21 November 2014. Retrieved 2014-11-22.
  10. ↑ «Балтийский завод» не успеет сдать вовремя ледокол для Росморпорта. РосБизнесКонсалтинг, 21 November 2014. Retrieved 2014-11-23.
  11. ↑ Госконтракты поправят на девальвацию. Kommersant, 26 January 2016. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  12. ↑ USC is concerned about the ability to deliver 25-MW diesel-electric icebreaker named Victor Chernomyrdin in 2017 amid sanctions. PortNews, 19 February 2016. Retrieved 2016-02-19.
  13. ↑ More delays for world’s biggest conventional icebreaker. The Independent Barents Observer, 19 February 2016. Retrieved 2016-02-20.
  14. ↑ Ледокол проекта 22600 планируют передать Росморпорту в этом году. RIA.ru, 7 April 2016. Retrieved 2016-04-09.
  15. ↑ Russians turn to Germans for quality superstructure. The Motor Ship, 8 August 2013. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 LK25 main particulars. Vladimir I. Shtrambrand, Arctic Passion Seminar 2013. Retrieved 2013-04-07.
  17. ↑ References - Propulsion Products. ABB. Retrieved 2015-05-28.
  18. ↑ Kirov Group Will Supply Equipment for World's Largest Diesel-Electric Icebreaker. JSC Kirovsky Zavod, 13 May 2013. Retrieved 2015-12-14.
  19. ↑ ABB wins $35 million order for next generation icebreaker in Russia’s Arctic. ABB. Retrieved 2013-04-12.
  20. ↑ Symbols and Abbreviations Used in Register of Ships. Russian Maritime Register of Shipping. Retrieved 2013-04-12.
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