If we talk about the development of the transport system of Russia in the Arctic, first of all we are talking about the development of the Northern Sea Route (NSR) as a single national transport highway. Its development presupposes stable and safe work in the interests of the national and regional economy, international, state and transit transportations, as well as the northern export of goods. It is hardly possible to imagine the solution of these problems without the use of a modern icebreaker fleet. The Russian Arctic fleet is in need of systemic modernization, which implies an increase in the share of promising icebreakers, as well as the construction of multi-purpose or dual-purpose vehicles that are most effective in the changing modern Arctic.
It is also necessary to build small and medium-tonnage river-sea-class ships, vessels for the transport of transit container cargo, ice-class tankers, dry cargo and bulk motor ships, research vessels, etc. Ensuring safe navigation in the Arctic requires the construction of a radically updated icebreaker fleet, construction of ice and reinforced ice class ships, special double-hulled tankers with additional emergency supplies.
Further development of the NSR involves the creation of the Northern Transport Corridor (STC), which would be accessible all year round. STK would act as a national transarctic sea line stretching from Murmansk to Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky. Navigation in 2011 can be called indicative for identifying the trend in the development of shipping in the Arctic. This navigation has demonstrated that the navigation of vessels for various purposes along the Northern Sea Route, for example, from Murmansk to various ports in Southeast Asia, provides a reduction in the delivery time of goods from 7 to 22 days compared to sailing through the Suez Canal. Naturally, with the appropriate support.
Today, Russia is in an advantageous position compared to all other contenders who would like to take advantage of the riches of the Arctic. In addition to 6 nuclear icebreakers (no country in the world has a nuclear icebreaker fleet), Russia has about 20 diesel icebreakers. For comparison, Denmark has 4 icebreakers, Norway has 1, the USA has 3, Canada has more icebreakers - 2 heavy icebreakers and more than a dozen small class icebreakers. However, the vast experience of working in high latitudes and the presence of a nuclear-powered icebreaker fleet provide Russia with an undoubted advantage.
The only nuclear-powered icebreakers in the world are currently located at the piers on the outskirts of Murmansk, they do not have much work in the summer. They rarely make tourist voyages to the Pole, but serious work has not yet begun for them. The domestic nuclear icebreaker fleet consists of 4 heavy icebreakers with a capacity of 75,000 hp. class "Arctic", 2 more icebreakers with a capacity of 40,000 hp. class "Taimyr" and one nuclear-powered icebreaker-class lighter carrier.
The analysis carried out by experts indicates that the transit traffic of goods along the NSR by 2015 may increase to 3-4 million tons, which will require 100 ice escorts per year. By 2019-2020, transit traffic along this route will grow to 5 million tons per year, which in turn will require an increase in the number of ice escorts to 170-180. By 2030, the need for icebreaker assistance will be more than 200 per year. Year-round operation of the route, as well as servicing of ports, will be able to reliably provide 5-6 nuclear icebreakers with a capacity of 60-110 MW, 6-8 non-nuclear icebreakers with a capacity of 25-30 MW and 8-10 non-nuclear icebreakers with a capacity of 16-18 MW. Moreover, their workload will not exceed 70%.
Icebreakers "Taimyr" and "Vaygach"
Unfortunately, it is already clear that the objective growth of annual transit traffic along the NSR can be significantly limited by the lack of the required number of modern icebreakers in Russia. Their construction is becoming the most important problem for the entire further development of the transport system in the Arctic. Taking into account the most preferable scenario for the development of the Arctic until 2030, a radical modernization of the NSR is envisaged with a simultaneous increase in cargo turnover on its routes to 30–35 million tons every year. Such a significant increase in cargo traffic along the Arctic routes should underlie the forecast of the further development of the Russian icebreaker and special Arctic fleet. But it should also be borne in mind that the demand for icebreakers will largely depend on whether the Northern Sea Route becomes attractive for foreign shipping companies.
Icebreaker fleet of Russia
140 years of the history of the icebreaker fleet have changed a lot in the design of these ships, most of all their power has grown over the years. So if the engine power of one of the first icebreakers "Ermak" was 9, 5 thousand hp, then the diesel-electric icebreaker "Moskva", which went out to sea just half a century later, developed a power of 22 thousand hp, and the nuclear icebreakers of the class " Taimyr "can develop power up to 50 thousand hp. Due to the difficulties associated with their maritime profession, the power of the propulsion systems of modern icebreakers per 1 ton of displacement is 6 times higher than that of ocean liners of similar displacement. At the same time, even atomic icebreakers remained qualitatively the same as their predecessors - armored boxes filled with huge "herds of horses". Their business is to break through the wormwood for the caravans of cargo ships and tankers following them, this principle of organizing ice transportation can be compared with the usual movement of barges behind a tug that pulls them.
Today, Russia has the largest icebreaker fleet in terms of numbers among all countries in the world. It includes 40 vessels of various purposes and classes. In addition, Russia is the only state with its own nuclear-powered icebreaker fleet. Today it includes 6 icebreakers, 1 lighter carrier and 4 service vessels. Back in 1987, the NSR was serviced by 17 linear icebreakers, among which there were 8 nuclear-powered ones, while the level of their load was no more than 30%.
The Russian icebreaker fleet is characterized by gradual aging, many ships have almost exhausted their service life. Today Russia has 6 nuclear-powered icebreakers: Rossiya, 50 Let Pobedy, Yamal, Sovetsky Soyuz, Vaigach and Taimyr. But experts are already sounding the alarm, the need to update the Russian nuclear fleet is becoming more and more tangible, since without the participation of these giants, it is simply unrealistic to develop the Arctic expanses and maintain the status of an Arctic power.
In the next 5-7 years, the oldest nuclear icebreakers should retire, after which only 2 of the newest ships will remain in service - Yamal, which was built in 1993, and 50 Years of Victory (2007). The first to go to the docks will be the icebreakers Rossiya (built in 1985), Taimyr (built in 1988) and Sovetsky Soyuz (built in 1989). At the same time, Rosatom reminds that at least 10 vessels are required for the NSR to function in full measure. So far, the existing icebreakers are coping with the organization of the necessary traffic intensity, but by 2020 the Northern Sea Route, with an increase in cargo turnover and the retirement of nuclear icebreakers, risks being in an “ice break”.
It is not surprising that Russia is thinking about the further development of its own icebreaker fleet. A number of specialists call the creation of an icebreaker belonging to a new generation, which is being created within the framework of project 22220 (LK-60Ya), as a top priority task. This icebreaker should become the most powerful of all existing nuclear icebreakers. It will have a body width of 33 meters. Its main feature should be a variable draft. This will be its main advantage over its predecessors. It will be able to work both in the estuaries of Siberian rivers and in the ocean, thanks to a special two-draft design. This icebreaker will have 2 working draft: 10, 5 and 8.5 meters. This function will be provided to the icebreaker by a high-speed ballast system. The icebreaker can change its draft from the minimum to the maximum value in 4 hours.
Icebreaker project LK-60Ya
Icebreaker fleet renewal progress
The construction of a national icebreaker fleet was planned in different years in a number of various federal target programs (FTP). The very first of these was the program "Revival of the Russian merchant fleet", which was approved by the President of the country and was designed for 1993-2000. In June 1996, this program was extended until the end of 2001. According to this program, it was planned to build 16 new icebreakers, but none of them was built within the specified time frame.
This program was replaced by a new FTP "Modernization of the transport system of Russia (2002–2010)". This program included the “Sea Transport” subprogram, within the framework of which a feasibility study was created for the construction of a new generation icebreaker fleet to ensure the operation of the NSR. According to this program, by 2015, it was planned to build and commission 2 nuclear icebreakers with a capacity of 55-60 MW, built according to project 22220 (LK-60Ya), the icebreakers were to receive a new generation reactor installation.
2-3 years before the completion of the construction of nuclear icebreakers, that is, approximately in 2012–2013, it was planned to commission 2 diesel-electric icebreakers of the LK-25 type, as well as to start building new-generation port icebreakers. But this program was also unfulfilled. Moreover, to date, not a single modern icebreaker with the required power has even been laid down at Russian shipyards or ordered abroad. Instead of diesel-electric icebreakers LK-25 with a capacity of 25 MW in 2008 and 2009, 2 icebreakers LK-18 with a capacity of 18 MW, built according to project 21900, were commissioned. May 31, 2006. It is worth noting that the LK-18 icebreakers are very well thought-out vessels, but they are not able to solve all the tasks of linear icebreakers on the Arctic routes.
Icebreaker "Moscow" LK-18, project 21900
On February 21, 2008, a new federal target program “Development of civil marine technology for 2009–2016” was adopted in Russia. In the future, the terms of its validity were adjusted for 2010-2015. According to this FTP, it was envisaged to develop technical proposals for the creation of a linear nuclear icebreaker with a capacity of up to 70 MW of a new generation, as well as a leader icebreaker with a capacity of 110–130 MW, intended for year-round operation on the routes of the Northern Sea Route.
This FTP also plans to carry out an assessment of the technical feasibility and create an organizational and technological project for the construction of nuclear icebreakers of increased power (150-200 MW). This program for the construction of the Russian icebreaker fleet for 2012–2014 made it possible to launch a universal nuclear icebreaker and 4 more diesel icebreakers with a capacity of 16–25 MW. In addition, the plans of the country's government until 2020 include the construction of 3 nuclear-powered icebreakers.
In the adopted "Strategy for the development of the shipbuilding industry for the period up to 2020 and for the future", the scale of the planned construction of the icebreaker fleet was further expanded. The document, in particular, says that in total, to solve the projected tasks for the period up to 2030 for the transportation of hydrocarbons on the continental shelf, our country will need 90 specialized transport vessels for Arctic navigation with a total deadweight of about 4 million tons and a fleet serving them in an amount of up to 140 units. In addition, it is necessary to build 10-12 new icebreakers (together with icebreakers of various classes and types, which will provide transport by sea, their total need is estimated at more than 40 units).
It should be emphasized that the volume of construction of the icebreaker fleet has been determined, but at the moment Russian shipbuilding companies have hardly started to implement such ambitious and urgent plans for Russia. The first nuclear-powered linear icebreaker LK-60Ya was laid down at the Baltic Shipyard at the end of 2012, and its operation is scheduled to begin in 2018. With such a rate of renewal of the icebreaker fleet, by this time the NSR of Russia may face a real threat of the onset of an "ice break".
