Finnish shipyard intends to build an icebreaker for the Russian company Norilsk Nickel
The Finnish shipyard Arctech Helsinki Shipyard intends to start building an icebreaker for the Russian mining and metallurgical company Norilsk Nickel, in accordance with the decision regarding Russia. This was announced today, August 12, by the managing director of the shipyard, Simo Rastas, to the Yle television company.
“This vessel will be the largest and most efficient icebreaker built in Finland. An application for obtaining an export license has already been submitted to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic,” he said.
According to Yle, this document is required by the company “in order to obtain permission to export vessels in the conditions of use.”
According to the Finnish Foreign Ministry, since a deal was concluded with Norilsk Nickel with state authorities due to the sanctions regime, an exception can be made in this situation. Rastas is awaiting a decision by the country’s foreign ministry regarding the icebreaker “within the coming months.”
On behalf of Norilsk Nickel, the ship will run on liquefied natural gas, which will reduce carbon dioxide emissions. It is planned to be handed over to the customer by the winter season of 2025. The tasks of the icebreaker will be to guide the company’s Arc7 and Arc5 ice-class vessels with a deadweight of up to 20,000 tons along the Yenisei, TASS writes.
Arctech Helsinki Shipyard is a joint venture between the Finnish company STX Finland and Russian United Shipbuilding Corporation. Since 2010, the shipyard has assembled dozens of modern ice-class vessels for Russian companies and operators Sovcomflot and Rosmorport, as well as the multifunctional rescue vessel Baltika. In the late 1980s, the Russian Central Design Bureau Iceberg, together with its subdivisions – Wartsila Marine Solutions – built the nuclear icebreakers Taimyr and Vaigach at the shipyard.