MOSCOW. June 29 (Interfax) - The United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) could deliver the Viktor Chernomyrdin icebreaker to the customer in July 2020, after the required normative act is released.
"The relevant normative act is currently being prepared which, I hope, will see light in the next two weeks, and we will finally be able, having signed the act, to hand this icebreaker over to the customer," USC General Director Alexei Rakhmanov said during an online Interfax press conference on Monday.
"As soon as normative documentation has been prepared, we will hand the product over to its end user," Rakhmanov said when asked if the icebreaker could be delivered in July.
"In this instance, a solution has been found by the Transport Ministry, with the help of the Industry Ministry, whereby losses will be partly covered by the USC and partly compensated," he said.
It was reported that the Transport Ministry, the Ministry of Industry and Trade, and the USC had agreed the terms of delivery of the icebreaker.
In February 2020 the USC announced its intention to deliver the icebreaker without penalties and launch a legal challenge over the cost of its construction. "The expected deadline: first quarter of 2020," USC said.
The construction began in October 2012. The deadline for delivery to the customer, FSUE "Rosmorport," was set for 2015 but has since been shifted several times.
Last July 2019 the Vedomosti newspaper reported, citing sources close to the Transport Ministry, that the cost of building the icebreaker, which had had a fire earlier, had increased by 50% to 12 billion rubles.
Last October Admiralteiskie Verfi shipyard (part of the USC) completed the maritime stage of sea-going and state trials of the Viktor Chernomyrdin icebreaker. After the trials, the vessel returned to the shipyard for finishing work. All of its technical specifications were validated during the trials.
The Project 22600 diesel electric icebreaker is one of the world's biggest and most powerful non-nuclear icebreakers designed for operation on the Northern Sea Route. Length: 147 meters; width: 29 meters; draft 8.5 meters; endurance 60 days; propulsion: 25 megawatts; crew and specialist personnel: 128 members.