Russia launched a new nuclear icebreaker. Why is it important
On Tuesday in St. Petersburg, the launch of the nuclear icebreaker "Yakutia" and the raising of the state flag of the Russian Federation on the nuclear icebreaker "Ural" took place. Both sides belong to Project 22220 - these are the largest and most powerful icebreaking ships in the world, and their main task is to ensure year-round navigation in the Arctic.
Two icebreakers of the 22220 series - "Arktika" and "Sibir" - are already operating on the most difficult sections of the Northern Sea Route. It is expected that the icebreaker "Ural" will begin performing its tasks in December of this year, and the icebreaker "Yakutia" should be transferred to the fleet at the end of 2024. Delivery of another icebreaker of the same series, “Chukotka,” is scheduled for 2026. In addition, in 2027, the construction of the super-powerful 120-megawatt nuclear icebreaker Rossiya, which has no equal in the world, should be completed at the Zvezda shipyard in the Far East.
Deputy Prime Minister Victoria Abramchenko, who oversees ecology, drew attention to the safety of the new ships - “the radiation level inside the icebreaker is lower than the natural background radiation.”
“You begin to realize that the only country in the world that has a nuclear icebreaker fleet is not only about technological sovereignty, but about the real status of the Great Arctic Power,” rejoices political scientist Pavel Danilin.
According to the director of the Rosatom state corporation, Alexei Likhachev, in the near future it is necessary to build up to 70 ice-class vessels - both icebreakers and cargo ships to ensure both export and domestic transportation. In addition, work is now underway to build diesel icebreakers so that nuclear-powered ships can be freed up to ensure year-round navigation on the Northern Sea Route.
This year, cargo turnover along the Northern Sea Route is expected to reach 34 million tons. This is two million tons higher than planned and 800 thousand tons more than last year’s record value. In 2035, transportation on the Northern Sea Route will exceed 200 million tons, the total macroeconomic effect will exceed 33 trillion rubles.
Military expert Ilya Kramnik believes that the experience of building nuclear icebreakers should be applied to the needs of the Northern Military District.
“The domestic industry, having hit its mark on the head product, is capable of building high-tech complex ships quickly and in series. When there is a sane customer and a humanely drawn up technical specification, which is not changed every year and a half.
Repetition specifically for... the needs of the state defense order, slowly and twice: the key words are a sane customer and a stable technical specification,” Kramnik points out.
By the way, on the bow of the new icebreaker next to the Russian flag are the coats of arms of the new constituent entities of the Russian Federation - the LDPR, as well as the Kherson and Zaporozhye regions.
Russia Launches New Nuclear-Powered Icebreaker. Why It's Important