OREANDA-NEWS. Vyborg Shipyard started production of the new icebreaking platform supply vessel for Sovcomflot JSC. The vessel is built in cooperation of Vyborg Shipyard and Arctech Helsinki Shipyard (both shipyards are corporate members of the United Shipbuilding Corporation).

At the official ceremony of the start of steel cutting for the Newbuilding Alexander Solovyev, General Director of VSY JSC, mentioned that the new order will provide significant workload for hull production workshops up to 2016 and also noted efficiency of the team-work with the Finnish shipyard: "I am sure that in particular on the example of this vessel we will demonstrate again that cooperation of the Russian and Finnish shipyards can be successfully built irrespective of any external circumstances. And though the ship is at the very start of production I would wish her "fair seas and a following wind" and all of us successful and fruitful work".

Managing Director of Arctech Helsinki Shipyard Esko Mustamaki said that earlier at VSY and AHS by order of Sovcomflot there were built two icebreaking multipurpose platform supply vessels "Vitus Bering" and "Alexey Chirikov" which are successfully operated at Sakhalin-1. The Newbuilding is some kind of continuation of the series modified in view of the latest requirements of the operator company Sakhalin Energy: "This Icebreaking Supply Vessel is third vessel which is built in cooperation with Vyborg Shipyard for Sovcomflot. We are happy to have the opportunity to build this new supply vessel - first in the series of four icebreaking vessels. Our partnership with Vyborg Shipyard started in the early 90s and certainly we believe that we will sign more new joint contracts".

In accordance with the contract the new icebreaking supply vessel will be constructed at Arctech Helsinki Shipyard, Vyborg Shipyard will build sections and blocks.

Design and equipment of the new vessels enable all-year-round transportation of personnel and supplies to the oil production platforms at Sakhalin-2 region and enhance their oil spill response and emergency evacuation capacity.

The vessels of the series have optimal energy performance parameters of the diesel-electric power plant and propulsion complex. Hull of the vessels is specially designed for operation astern in ice conditions and equipped with dynamic positioning system to maintain the vessel's fixed position at the platform and high ice-going properties. Winterization system provides safety operation of the vessels in ice up to 1.7 meters.