Arktika icebreaker arrives in Murmansk
The lead ship of Project 22220 to be delivered to Atomflot on October 21
The lead nuclear-powered icebreaker of Project 22220, the Arktika, has completed the transition from Saint-Petersburg to its homeport Murmansk on 12 October 2020, says press center of FSUE Atomflot, a company of State Corporation “Rosatom”.
The ship has docked at the berth of Atomflot’s base having covered about 4,800 nautical miles for 21 days.
According to Konstantin Knyazevsky, Deputy General Director, Fleet Construction, head of representative office in Saint-Petersburg, Atomflot, the icebreaker’s design characteristics have been confirmed in ice conditions.
“The nuclear-powered icebreaker has broken through all ice floes in the polar region at 50 per cent of its capacity. That was possible thanks to unique shape of the ships’ hull”, he explained.
The Arktika crew tested the operation of the icebreaker’s rudder propeller unit and electric propulsion system in ice floes of various thickness.
As it was reported earlier, the lead nuclear-powered icebreaker of Project 22220, the Arktika, left the outfitting quay of Baltiysky Zavod JSC for Murmansk on 22 September 2020. On 3 October 2020, at 6 p.m. (Moscow time) the ship reached the geographical point of the North Pole.
The ceremonial delivery of the lead icebreaker to FSUE Atomflot and the hoisting of the Russian Federation flag onboard the ship is scheduled for 21 October 2020.
The lead icebreaker of Project 22220, the Arktika, ordered by State Corporation “Rosatom” was laid down at Baltiysky Zavod shipyard on 5 November 2013 and launched on 16 June 2016. Project 22220 ships will be the world’s largest and most powerful nuclear-powered icebreakers (60MW). The vessels’ dual-draft concept allows for operating them both in the Arctic and in the mouths of the polar rivers.
The icebreakers designed by CDB Iceberg in 2009 will be operated in the western region of the Arctic: in the Barents, Pechora and Kara Seas, as well as in shallower areas of the Yenisei estuary and the Ob Bay area.
General characteristics of 22220 Project vessels: capacity - 60 MW, operational speed - 22 knots (clean water), length - 173.3 m (160 m, DWL), beam - 34 m (33 m, DWL), depth - 15.2 m; draft (DWL) - 10.5 m; minimum draft - 8.65 m, maximum icebreaking capability - 2.9-meter-thick ice (at full capacity and speed of 1.5-2 knots); full displacement – 33,540 tonnes; designated service life - 40 years, crew - 53.
Nuclear-powered icebreakers of Project 22220 are equipped with two RITM-200 reactors of 175 MW. Project 22220 ships will be the world’s largest and most powerful nuclear-powered icebreakers (60MW).
RITM-200 is a two-reactor plant developed by Afrikantov OKBM specially for the icebreaking fleet. Its design features energy-efficient integrated layout, which enables the placement of the main equipment directly inside the steam generating unit's casing.
Arktika is named after the legendary nuclear-powered icebreaker, the first surface ship that reached the North Pole.
On 26 May 2020, Baltiysky Zavod shipyard (a company of United Shipbuilding Corporation) held a ceremony of keel-laying for the third serial icebreaker of Project 22220 (the forth one including the lead ship). The 60-MW ship named Yakutia will be operated by FSUE Atomflot (State Corporation “Rosatom”) in the Arctic.
Under the contract with FSUE Rosatomflot, Baltiysky Zavod shipyard is building three LK-60 60MW icebreakers of Project 22220 (Arktika, Sibir, Ural). The delivery of the lead icebreaker, the Arktika, is scheduled for May 2020. The Sibir and the Ural are to be delivered in 2021 and in 2022 accordingly. A total of five icebreakers of 22220 design are to be built under Rosatom’s concept for the development of its icebreaking fleet.
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