sovcomflot shipping group announced information about the Russian-made liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers that could break the ice. The ship is expected to be operational in the second half of this year at the 2nd LNG plant in the Arctic.
International sanctions on Russia over the conflict in Ukraine have led to a shortage of icebreakers in Russia, making it impossible for the second Arctic LNG plant to export goods since the plant began operations in late 2023.
Russia's new LNG carrier, Alexey Kosygin, named after a Soviet statesman, is built at the Zvezda Shipyard and will join the fleet specializing in serving the 2nd Arctic LNG project.
The Alexey Kosygin is already on the US sanctions list. Russia's latest icebreaker LNG tankers began trial at sea late last year and the final testing phase is expected to begin in late June.
If all the test parameters meet the requirements, it is likely that the ship will be put into operation in the second half of this year, Sovcomflot CEO Igor Tonkovidov told Interfax.
Russian energy giant Novatek, which owns a 60% stake in the Arctic LNG 2 project, said that a total of 15 Arc7 icebreaker ships capable of cutting through a 2m thick layer of ice will be built at the Zvezda workshop to serve the transport of LNG from projects in the Arctic.
In total, Novatek has signed contracts to build 21 icebreakers of this type.
