Russian Naval Shipbuilding Industry: News

Deputy Head of USC Korolev: we will provide all the needs of the Navy in the designated time frame

On domestic shipbuilding in the context of a special military operation in Ukraine
The Russian shipbuilding industry is tasked with achieving technological sovereignty. This requirement is enshrined not only in the new Maritime doctrine, but also in the design bureaus and shipyards of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) are working to achieve this goal. In an interview with TASS on the sidelines of the Army-2022 International Military-Technical Forum, the Deputy General Director spoke about the prospects of the Russian shipbuilding industry, the feasibility of adjusting its program to take into account a special military operation, the corporation's shipyards ' ability to speed up the repair and construction of units, and which ships the Russian fleet needs most today. USC for Military Shipbuilding Vladimir Korolev.

- Vladimir Ivanovich, do you plan to sign new contracts with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation within the framework of the Army-2022 forum, as it was done earlier?

— Currently, the Russian Defense Ministry has not received any such proposals. However, our corporation is ready to consider them. Nevertheless, I would not like to reduce USC's participation in the Army forum to just signed contracts. Here people meet, questions are asked and answers are found that determine the future of our fleet.

— What ships do you think the Navy needs most at the present time? Is there an urgent need to adjust the shipbuilding program to take into account the special military operation in Ukraine?

— Of course, events such as a special military operation provide a lot of food for thought for all interested parties. Today, the information space is replete with various points of view on the issue of determining the ship composition of the fleet and conducting various forms of military operations. But the stated points of view are one thing, and the adjustment of the shipbuilding program is quite another. Of course, it is possible, but after a very balanced analysis of many factors. For example, the presidential decree "On approval of the New Maritime Doctrine of the Russian Federation"has just been signed. But do not think that it is a reaction to the events of recent months — the new Naval Doctrine has been prepared for more than one year, and it answers questions that have been accumulating for many years.

Adjustments to the current shipbuilding program are provided for every five years as part of the development of a new state armament program. The formation of such program documents by the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation is carried out in the process of multivariate research, which certainly ensures a rational distribution of allocated resources to achieve the maximum equipment and efficiency of the weapons system necessary and sufficient to protect Russia's interests from any external threats.

In my opinion, which ships are most needed by the Navy? I will not be original if I say that just those that are being built at the corporation's enterprises-otherwise why would we build them? These are a series of modern surface ships such as "frigate" and "corvette", a submarine fleet, including a series of nuclear submarines. By order of the Russian Defense Ministry, the corporation performs development work on the creation of new surface and submarine ships.

— In a number of media outlets, there are proposals to buy a large batch of ships in China for the emergency closure of the needs of the Russian Navy. To what extent do you think such initiatives are justified?

— In my opinion, the Russian shipbuilding industry, despite the existing objective difficulties, is able to solve all the tasks set to meet the needs of the Navy in the prescribed time frame. In the interests of national security of the country, it is necessary to have its own modern production base that provides a full life cycle from the creation to the disposal of ships with the possibility of their modernization.

I do not think that diverting financial resources to build ships in friendly countries is an effective solution to the issue of an emergency increase in their number. In addition, in this case, a number of questions will arise regarding crew training, operation, maintenance and repair, provision of spare parts, and finally-protection of state secrets.

This, of course, does not mean that we should completely curtail mutually beneficial military-technical cooperation with friendly countries. In the current international situation, it plays a positive role in ensuring regional security.

— In your opinion, are USC shipyards able to raise the speed of ship repair and construction to the level of the world's leading shipbuilding corporations?

— In my opinion, they are not only capable, but also should. But it's not just up to us. At the shipyards, work is constantly being done to reduce deadlines. For this purpose, enterprises are being equipped with new technological equipment, modern technologies are being introduced. However, it should be borne in mind that the share of the shipyard's own work in the construction of the ship is on average about 30%, the rest depends on the equipment suppliers. Therefore, the terms of construction of a ship are determined by two-thirds compliance with the terms of delivery of equipment with a long manufacturing cycle. When it comes to new weapons systems, some delays, unfortunately, are inevitable.

But if we, as the world's leading shipbuilding corporations, have orders for large series, stable supplies of components and financing, I am sure we will gain momentum. And we have proved it more than once — take submarines for example.

— The USC leadership has repeatedly stated that Russian nuclear submarines are built entirely from domestic components. And what is the situation with the problem of replacing foreign components in the construction of surface ships?

- Design bureaus-designers, together with cooperative enterprises and factories-builders of surface ships under the leadership of the USC and the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, are consistently working to replace foreign components with domestic ones in the face of sanctions pressure on the Russian Federation. Where it is not possible to do this in a short time, while foreign analogues are used, but the task of achieving technological sovereignty is set. This is also enshrined in the new Maritime Doctrine: "ensuring the technological independence of the Russian Federation in the field of shipbuilding".

— When is the Admiral Nakhimov Project 1144.2 M heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser scheduled to go to sea for testing? And how does USC see the future for this ship? How do you assess its combat capabilities?

— The procedure and terms of testing are determined by the general schedule for the repair of the cruiser. The first sea launch of the cruiser for testing is planned after the completion of the entire complex of mooring tests. We are proceeding in compliance with the general schedule.

In accordance with the technical design of the ship, outdated systems and complexes will be replaced with modern weapons and military equipment, which in their characteristics correspond to the appearance of a promising ship. After the repair is completed, the Navy will receive a new modern ship capable of performing all its tasks in any area of the World's oceans.

— Is the transfer of the Generalissimo Suvorov Project 955A Borey-A nuclear-powered submarine to the Russian Navy confirmed this year?

— The ship is already at the test stage and will be transferred to the Navy after their completion.

— When can we expect the launch of the main upgraded frigate 22350M at Severnaya Verf?

- Laying is planned after the development of the technical design and working design documentation in the amount of at least 60%. All documents are prepared by the Northern Design Bureau, and the technical design will soon be submitted to the Russian Defense Ministry for approval.

— When will the final decision be made on the sixth building of project 11356? Does the Yantar shipyard have the necessary capabilities to complete the construction of this ship in the interests of the Russian Navy?

— The Ministry of Defense has not yet made a decision on this issue. PSZ Yantar has extensive experience in building ships of this project, three have already been transferred to the Navy. The technology has been developed, a stable cooperation of suppliers of component equipment has been created — we are ready to build if the Ministry of Defense decides to do so. You can also start building a new series of such ships.

— What are the prospects for completing the project 20385 Agile corvette at Severnaya Verf? What was the conclusion of the USC commission that investigated the causes and consequences of the fire on this ship?

— The commission for identifying the causes and consequences of a technical accident, which included representatives of the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia, and specialized organizations, made the main conclusion — about the possibility of completing the ship. We will complete it and transfer it to the Navy.

— Will some of the orders currently being executed by Severnaya Verf be transferred to other shipyards of the corporation?

— No, such a transfer is not planned. Severnaya Verf is now expanding its production facilities. A new complex with modern equipment is being built on its territory. With its introduction, the shipyard will be able to increase the range and basic dimensions of its products, reduce the duration of construction orders.

— What projects are implemented by the corporation together with the Foundation for Advanced Research (FPI)? Can you tell us more about some of them?

— Together with the FPI, we have two works related to underwater research. This is the Uragan advance project and the further development of the Vityaz-D project. The first, generally speaking, is a marine mobile robotics system, and the work performed by us is highly appreciated by the customer. The second is a deep-sea robotic complex, which will be retrofitted with new research equipment.

— The Military Department plans to create bases in the Arctic. Will icebreakers and ice-class supply vessels be built to ensure their operation?

— In terms of military shipbuilding, ice-class patrol ships of Project 23550 are already being built for the Navy. Proposals for the construction of ships and vessels of other projects have not yet been received.

— Now very interesting projects for shipbuilding are increasingly appearing: the Varan universal sea ship (Nevsky Design Bureau), the Strazh submerged patrol ship (Rubin Design Bureau), the nuclear submarine for transporting liquefied natural gas (Malachit SPMBM), and others. How would you assess the prospects and uniqueness of such projects? Is there already any interest in them from specific customers, including the Russian Navy?

— Yes, indeed, today various interesting projects are being developed within the framework of initiative developments, both from an engineering point of view and from a shipbuilding point of view. In many ways, they are unique and can be used in various areas of the national economy, tourism and, of course, in the interests of the country's defense. But, like any other beautiful and bold projects, they must first interest the customer. And customers in the shipbuilding industry, as a rule, have conservative views in a good way, and their decisions are based primarily on the economic component, which is very difficult to calculate for completely new vessels. Therefore, customers prefer something more understandable, proven, preferably with operational experience.

Nevertheless, such initiative developments make sense, and USC encourages them.

Because, despite the immediate economic feasibility, we have a great desire to become world leaders on some topics
Just as the first nuclear — powered icebreaker Lenin once made our country a leader in this area, we still hold the lead in nuclear shipbuilding.

— Are the enterprises and design bureaus that are part of the USC working on creating completely new projects — ships of the future? What kind of ships will they be, and how much will their appearance change? And how do you see the domestic shipbuilding industry in 10-20 years?

— Of course, such work is underway. They are aimed at improving the combat effectiveness of ships, improving the quality of weapons and technical means of ships, increasing their ammunition.

However, the main changes will still take place in a different area. In the near future, along with manned ships, unmanned autonomous robotic ships will go to sea. And on those ships where the crew remains, integrated combat control systems will be implemented, which will combine systems for various functional purposes.

As for the prospects of shipbuilding, in my opinion, it is necessary to pay attention to the introduction of the modular principle in the design and construction of ships, simplification of the process of restructuring production for new projects and automation of production processes. But no matter how far into the future we look, it is unlikely that we will see a deserted shipyard there. After all, building ships and putting your heart and soul into them is not a robot's job, but a human's.

https://tass.ru/interviews/15461475

Putin criticized the head of USC for unprofitable contracts

According to the President, "violation of financial discipline does not correspond to the interests of the Motherland"
SOCHI, August 18. /tass/. Russian President Vladimir Putin considers the violation of financial discipline harmful to the interests of the Motherland, even if it is motivated by them. This issue was raised at a meeting that the head of state held on Thursday on the topic of shipbuilding.

Putin asked the head of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) Alexey Rakhmanov why they have accumulated so many unprofitable contracts. The top manager replied that the corporation acts in favor of customers to complete the construction of ships, and then deals with the money. "Maybe this is the wrong approach, I sprinkle ashes on my head, but it always seemed to me that first the Motherland, and then our finances," Rakhmanov said.

"I would like to draw your attention to the fact that the interests of the Motherland are directly linked to financial discipline," Putin said. According to him, "violation of financial discipline does not correspond to the interests of the Motherland." "As for the interests of the customer, of course, we need to work with the customer and ensure their interests, but this does not mean that we need to do humpty dumpty: start construction, finish it, and then sort out the finances, adjusting one to the other," the president stressed.

Putin mentioned the scheme that is used for orders from the Ministry of Defense, when initially there are estimated prices. "All this can be done [for civil orders], the question is not to neglect the interests of the customer. The question is to work out all the formal issues related to the conclusion of the contract in a timely, competent and short time. I draw your attention to this, please, " the President said. "Yes, Vladimir Vladimirovich! Accepted for execution, " - said Rakhmanov.

Earlier at the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov said that the government decided to conduct a financial audit of the accumulated debt of USC. According to him, this need arose due to the fact that shipbuilding companies often conclude firm contracts for the construction of civilian vessels in the absence of a final project. As a result, shipyards are forced to take losses for exceeding the original cost in order to hand over the ship. To avoid a repeat of such situations, Manturov instructed USC to no longer enter into contracts for the construction of ships without a technical and economic examination of the project.

https://tass.ru/politika/15509355

Putin getting serious about developing the navy and some strong signaling go hand in hand...

If this operation in Ukraine, and against NATO, one showed that every ship (everything from the Buyan-M class upwards) was built with a marine TOR variant with at least 8 long range and 24 small TOR rockets. A clear rethink must be placed here, a clear priority on this Air-Defense system. No compromises, no hesitation!

Buyan are kept at a good distance so AD isn't really needed even if it would be better to have it.

Plenty of other ships that are sent on the front have the priority to get better AD systems and radar.

There is no "good distance" anymore, when you have cheap drones able to fly hundreds of km and conflicts develop in complex geographic contexts where attacks can come from everywhere. Every asset bigger than a small boat needs decent AD, and even the smallest ships will probably get anti-drone means. It is an obvious lesson of the SMO

But even in that regard Russia is ahead of the west. Pantsir and Tor are pretty good systems. Best western system for smaller vessels is propably RAM which uses parts of Stinger, a complete failure during the SMO.

LMFS wrote:Deputy Head of USC Korolev: we will provide all the needs of the Navy in the designated time frame

On domestic shipbuilding in the context of a special military operation in Ukraine
The Russian shipbuilding industry is tasked with achieving technological sovereignty. This requirement is enshrined not only in the new Maritime doctrine, but also in the design bureaus and shipyards of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) are working to achieve this goal. In an interview with TASS on the sidelines of the Army-2022 International Military-Technical Forum, the Deputy General Director spoke about the prospects of the Russian shipbuilding industry, the feasibility of adjusting its program to take into account a special military operation, the corporation's shipyards ' ability to speed up the repair and construction of units, and which ships the Russian fleet needs most today. USC for Military Shipbuilding Vladimir Korolev.

- Vladimir Ivanovich, do you plan to sign new contracts with the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation within the framework of the Army-2022 forum, as it was done earlier?

— Currently, the Russian Defense Ministry has not received any such proposals. However, our corporation is ready to consider them. Nevertheless, I would not like to reduce USC's participation in the Army forum to just signed contracts. Here people meet, questions are asked and answers are found that determine the future of our fleet.

— What ships do you think the Navy needs most at the present time? Is there an urgent need to adjust the shipbuilding program to take into account the special military operation in Ukraine?

— Of course, events such as a special military operation provide a lot of food for thought for all interested parties. Today, the information space is replete with various points of view on the issue of determining the ship composition of the fleet and conducting various forms of military operations. But the stated points of view are one thing, and the adjustment of the shipbuilding program is quite another. Of course, it is possible, but after a very balanced analysis of many factors. For example, the presidential decree "On approval of the New Maritime Doctrine of the Russian Federation"has just been signed. But do not think that it is a reaction to the events of recent months — the new Naval Doctrine has been prepared for more than one year, and it answers questions that have been accumulating for many years.

Adjustments to the current shipbuilding program are provided for every five years as part of the development of a new state armament program. The formation of such program documents by the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation is carried out in the process of multivariate research, which certainly ensures a rational distribution of allocated resources to achieve the maximum equipment and efficiency of the weapons system necessary and sufficient to protect Russia's interests from any external threats.

In my opinion, which ships are most needed by the Navy? I will not be original if I say that just those that are being built at the corporation's enterprises-otherwise why would we build them? These are a series of modern surface ships such as "frigate" and "corvette", a submarine fleet, including a series of nuclear submarines. By order of the Russian Defense Ministry, the corporation performs development work on the creation of new surface and submarine ships.

— In a number of media outlets, there are proposals to buy a large batch of ships in China for the emergency closure of the needs of the Russian Navy. To what extent do you think such initiatives are justified?

— In my opinion, the Russian shipbuilding industry, despite the existing objective difficulties, is able to solve all the tasks set to meet the needs of the Navy in the prescribed time frame. In the interests of national security of the country, it is necessary to have its own modern production base that provides a full life cycle from the creation to the disposal of ships with the possibility of their modernization.

I do not think that diverting financial resources to build ships in friendly countries is an effective solution to the issue of an emergency increase in their number. In addition, in this case, a number of questions will arise regarding crew training, operation, maintenance and repair, provision of spare parts, and finally-protection of state secrets.

This, of course, does not mean that we should completely curtail mutually beneficial military-technical cooperation with friendly countries. In the current international situation, it plays a positive role in ensuring regional security.

— In your opinion, are USC shipyards able to raise the speed of ship repair and construction to the level of the world's leading shipbuilding corporations?

— In my opinion, they are not only capable, but also should. But it's not just up to us. At the shipyards, work is constantly being done to reduce deadlines. For this purpose, enterprises are being equipped with new technological equipment, modern technologies are being introduced. However, it should be borne in mind that the share of the shipyard's own work in the construction of the ship is on average about 30%, the rest depends on the equipment suppliers. Therefore, the terms of construction of a ship are determined by two-thirds compliance with the terms of delivery of equipment with a long manufacturing cycle. When it comes to new weapons systems, some delays, unfortunately, are inevitable.

But if we, as the world's leading shipbuilding corporations, have orders for large series, stable supplies of components and financing, I am sure we will gain momentum. And we have proved it more than once — take submarines for example.

— The USC leadership has repeatedly stated that Russian nuclear submarines are built entirely from domestic components. And what is the situation with the problem of replacing foreign components in the construction of surface ships?

- Design bureaus-designers, together with cooperative enterprises and factories-builders of surface ships under the leadership of the USC and the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation, are consistently working to replace foreign components with domestic ones in the face of sanctions pressure on the Russian Federation. Where it is not possible to do this in a short time, while foreign analogues are used, but the task of achieving technological sovereignty is set. This is also enshrined in the new Maritime Doctrine: "ensuring the technological independence of the Russian Federation in the field of shipbuilding".

— When is the Admiral Nakhimov Project 1144.2 M heavy nuclear-powered missile cruiser scheduled to go to sea for testing? And how does USC see the future for this ship? How do you assess its combat capabilities?

— The procedure and terms of testing are determined by the general schedule for the repair of the cruiser. The first sea launch of the cruiser for testing is planned after the completion of the entire complex of mooring tests. We are proceeding in compliance with the general schedule.

In accordance with the technical design of the ship, outdated systems and complexes will be replaced with modern weapons and military equipment, which in their characteristics correspond to the appearance of a promising ship. After the repair is completed, the Navy will receive a new modern ship capable of performing all its tasks in any area of the World's oceans.

— Is the transfer of the Generalissimo Suvorov Project 955A Borey-A nuclear-powered submarine to the Russian Navy confirmed this year?

— The ship is already at the test stage and will be transferred to the Navy after their completion.

— When can we expect the launch of the main upgraded frigate 22350M at Severnaya Verf?

- Laying is planned after the development of the technical design and working design documentation in the amount of at least 60%. All documents are prepared by the Northern Design Bureau, and the technical design will soon be submitted to the Russian Defense Ministry for approval.

— When will the final decision be made on the sixth building of project 11356? Does the Yantar shipyard have the necessary capabilities to complete the construction of this ship in the interests of the Russian Navy?

— The Ministry of Defense has not yet made a decision on this issue. PSZ Yantar has extensive experience in building ships of this project, three have already been transferred to the Navy. The technology has been developed, a stable cooperation of suppliers of component equipment has been created — we are ready to build if the Ministry of Defense decides to do so. You can also start building a new series of such ships.

— What are the prospects for completing the project 20385 Agile corvette at Severnaya Verf? What was the conclusion of the USC commission that investigated the causes and consequences of the fire on this ship?

— The commission for identifying the causes and consequences of a technical accident, which included representatives of the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia, and specialized organizations, made the main conclusion — about the possibility of completing the ship. We will complete it and transfer it to the Navy.

— Will some of the orders currently being executed by Severnaya Verf be transferred to other shipyards of the corporation?

— No, such a transfer is not planned. Severnaya Verf is now expanding its production facilities. A new complex with modern equipment is being built on its territory. With its introduction, the shipyard will be able to increase the range and basic dimensions of its products, reduce the duration of construction orders.

— What projects are implemented by the corporation together with the Foundation for Advanced Research (FPI)? Can you tell us more about some of them?

— Together with the FPI, we have two works related to underwater research. This is the Uragan advance project and the further development of the Vityaz-D project. The first, generally speaking, is a marine mobile robotics system, and the work performed by us is highly appreciated by the customer. The second is a deep-sea robotic complex, which will be retrofitted with new research equipment.

— The Military Department plans to create bases in the Arctic. Will icebreakers and ice-class supply vessels be built to ensure their operation?

— In terms of military shipbuilding, ice-class patrol ships of Project 23550 are already being built for the Navy. Proposals for the construction of ships and vessels of other projects have not yet been received.

— Now very interesting projects for shipbuilding are increasingly appearing: the Varan universal sea ship (Nevsky Design Bureau), the Strazh submerged patrol ship (Rubin Design Bureau), the nuclear submarine for transporting liquefied natural gas (Malachit SPMBM), and others. How would you assess the prospects and uniqueness of such projects? Is there already any interest in them from specific customers, including the Russian Navy?

— Yes, indeed, today various interesting projects are being developed within the framework of initiative developments, both from an engineering point of view and from a shipbuilding point of view. In many ways, they are unique and can be used in various areas of the national economy, tourism and, of course, in the interests of the country's defense. But, like any other beautiful and bold projects, they must first interest the customer. And customers in the shipbuilding industry, as a rule, have conservative views in a good way, and their decisions are based primarily on the economic component, which is very difficult to calculate for completely new vessels. Therefore, customers prefer something more understandable, proven, preferably with operational experience.

Nevertheless, such initiative developments make sense, and USC encourages them.

Because, despite the immediate economic feasibility, we have a great desire to become world leaders on some topics
Just as the first nuclear — powered icebreaker Lenin once made our country a leader in this area, we still hold the lead in nuclear shipbuilding.

— Are the enterprises and design bureaus that are part of the USC working on creating completely new projects — ships of the future? What kind of ships will they be, and how much will their appearance change? And how do you see the domestic shipbuilding industry in 10-20 years?

— Of course, such work is underway. They are aimed at improving the combat effectiveness of ships, improving the quality of weapons and technical means of ships, increasing their ammunition.

However, the main changes will still take place in a different area. In the near future, along with manned ships, unmanned autonomous robotic ships will go to sea. And on those ships where the crew remains, integrated combat control systems will be implemented, which will combine systems for various functional purposes.

As for the prospects of shipbuilding, in my opinion, it is necessary to pay attention to the introduction of the modular principle in the design and construction of ships, simplification of the process of restructuring production for new projects and automation of production processes. But no matter how far into the future we look, it is unlikely that we will see a deserted shipyard there. After all, building ships and putting your heart and soul into them is not a robot's job, but a human's.

https://tass.ru/interviews/15461475

This guy sounds like hes desperately trying to shill for severnaya verf, and is hellbent on making severnaya verf be the only shipyard that produces large ships. The guy is straight up lying that USC shipyards can fulfill the needs of the navy in terms of large ships, given that baltic and zvezda are filled with backlogs, severnaya is a corrupt trashheap, and zaliv and more are basically zombie shipyards incapable of building anything more than a patrol boat in a reasonable timeframe.

Reactors were loaded onto the fourth icebreaker of the Arktika type


Loading reactors on the icebreaker "Yakutia"
"Baltiysky Zavod"



Specialists of the Baltiysky Zavod loaded two RITM-200 reactor units onto the nuclear-powered icebreaker Yakutia of project 22220 (Arktika). As noted on Wednesday, August 24, in the press service of the enterprise, the installation of reactor plants is one of the key production operations in the process of building nuclear-powered ships, during which the ship acquires a "heart" that sets it in motion.

According to the representatives of the shipyard, on August 23, a complex technological process for loading and assembling on the icebreaker Yakutia of two steam generating units of the RITM-200 reactor plant with a thermal capacity of 175 MW each was completed. The weight of one block is 147.5 tons, height - 7.3 meters, diameter - 3.3 meters.
As noted in the press service of the Baltiysky Zavod, the main advantage of power plants of this type is compactness and efficiency. They have a unique energy efficient integral layout that allows the main equipment to be located directly inside the steam generating unit casing. The service life of the reactors is 40 years, and the unique design makes it possible to make the Project 22220 icebreakers double-draft, providing improved technical characteristics of the vessel in terms of ice breaking speed.

Now the specialists of the "Baltiysky Zavod" will have to carry out the final installation of the reactor plant, its auxiliary equipment and fittings.

The universal nuclear icebreaker "Yakutia" is the fourth vessel of project 22220, which is being built at the "Baltiysky Zavod" by order of the Federal State Unitary Enterprise "Atomflot". It was laid down in May 2020. Earlier it was reported that Yakutia will be launched in November 2022.

Recall that Baltiysky Zavod handed over the lead icebreaker of project 22220 Arktika into operation in October 2020 with a faulty propulsion motor on the right shaft with the obligation of the United Shipbuilding Corporation to replace it in 2021. The ship underwent a scheduled overhaul last year.

In January 2022, Atomflot received a second icebreaker, Sibir.

In addition to Yakutia, the construction of two more icebreakers of project 22220, Ural and Chukotka, continues at Baltiysky Zavod.
Project 22220 nuclear-powered icebreakers are designed for independent escort of ships and year-round leading caravans in the Western region of the Arctic, in the shallow areas of the Yenisei and the Gulf of Ob, towing ships, as well as providing assistance and performing rescue operations in ice conditions and in clear water. Icebreakers can overcome up to 2.8 meters of solid fast ice. They will become the most powerful ships of this type in the world.

The main characteristics of the vessel:

• maximum length - 173.3 meters;
• width - 34 meters;
• side height amidships - 15.2 meters;
• draft – 8.5–10.5 meters;
• displacement - 33,500 tons.

https://flot.com/2022/%D0%91%D0%B0%D0%BB%D1%82%D0%B8%D0%B9%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9%D0%97%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B45/

https://e-vid.ru/ekonomika/050622/sokrovischa-novorossii-ili-chto-sulit-ekonomike-rossii-uspekh-specoperacii-na

An extract from the article
Treasures of Novorossia, or What promises the Russian economy the success of the “special operation” in Ukraine, from Sergey Kudiyarov

Here it only mentions Mariupol shiprepairing yard and the large Kherson shipyard, as Nikolaev (where 3 of the largest shipyards of Soviet Union were located) is still in Ukrainian hands.
I know that those shipyards are not in working state and probably ruined, but the drydocks and some of the infrastructure still exists. It will be much easier to rebuild them in comparison to create something from scratch elsewhere, also because the location is perfect for shipbuilding. Furthermore there is a nice shiprepairing yard on the Danube river (on the city of Izmail).

Cradle of the Black Sea Fleet
Historically, the main shipbuilding cluster of our country on the Black Sea was located in Nikolaev. This city has not yet fallen into the sphere of our control and therefore is not considered in this review. But even what is already ours has something to please connoisseurs of the sea wave.

First of all, of course, this is the Kherson Shipbuilding Plant - aka Smart Maritime Group - Kherson Shipyard (before the special operation, it was part of the Smart Holding group of Vadim Novinsky). Kherson was, in principle, the cradle of our Black Sea Fleet (its history began with the creation of a shipyard here back in the 18th century), but this particular plant was founded in 1951. The existing production facilities are based on two production zones. In the first, units up to 2000 tons are formed in the so-called large-sized building for further movement to the construction berth (two lines of construction berths, each 300 m long). In the second, hull molding is carried out on a covered construction berth on two lines of berths, each 240 m long. Historically, the plant built ships up to 170 m long and with a deadweight of up to 16,000 tons.

Here, in Kherson, the plant "Pallada" (founded in 1936 as a specialized plant for the construction of floating docks of reinforced concrete and composite construction) and the plant of ship equipment and ship fittings "Sudmash" (davits, hoists, winches, rectangular portholes, anchor devices, high-pressure hoses, marine fittings, marine hydraulic cylinders, etc.). That is, we can say that in Kherson there is a reserve for the formation of a new shipbuilding cluster.

There is also shipbuilding in Mariupol, represented by the Azov Shipyard. Mariupol Shipyard was founded in 1931 on the basis of production workshops built at the end of the 19th century. The plant has a floating dock with a carrying capacity of 15 thousand tons and can serve vessels up to 200 m long, the approach channel provides the possibility of accepting vessels with a draft of up to 8 m for repair. The enterprise has the capacity to carry out major and dock repairs. The capacities of the enterprise allow to repair up to 120 ships annually, as well as to manufacture spare parts for any type of ships.

It can be noted that Russia already has experience in resuscitation of the half-dead shipyard "Zaliv" in Kerch, which in a short time became a profitable first-class enterprise.

Practice shows an extremely high degree of utilization of existing shipbuilding capacities in Russia, which leads to the transfer of orders to foreign suppliers, which technically could be done with us. So the lack of work for the new shipyards is hardly to be worried about. We need these shipyards.

The head of Ak Bars spoke about the modernization of Gepard-type corvettes




The armament of project 11661 Gepard 3.9 corvettes is planned to be tripled: instead of eight Uran missiles, 24 Kalibr missiles will be installed, as well as eight anti-aircraft missiles of the latest Resurs complex (export analogue of Poliment-Redut). This was reported to RIA Novosti by the general director of the Ak Bars shipbuilding corporation Renat Mistakhov.
Previously, Project 11661 ships were armed with Uran and Caliber missile systems, as well as Osa anti-aircraft systems.
"The Gepard 3.9 ships are a novelty, a highlight of this year. With a displacement of 2200 tons, we placed 24 Clubs on it (Club-S is the export analogue of the Caliber - ed.), as well as eight mines for Resurs "This is a deeply developed project," Mistakhov said.

https://flot.com/2022/%D0%97%D0%B5%D0%BB%D0%B5%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%B4%D0%BE%D0%BB%D1%8C%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9%D0%97%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B47/

Podlodka77 wrote:The head of Ak Bars spoke about the modernization of Gepard-type corvettes

Is this for export Gepards (Vietnam has 4) or for those in Russian service (2)?

If Russian, the Dagestan already has 1x UKSK silo, and Tatarstan only has dual quad Kh-35s. Updating with 3x UKSK would require very significant structural changes for such small (<2000 ton) vessels. Hardly seems worth the trouble, better to just build new ships?

I suspect this is more about an updated design for export?

Big_Gazza wrote:

Podlodka77 wrote:The head of Ak Bars spoke about the modernization of Gepard-type corvettes

Is this for export Gepards (Vietnam has 4) or for those in Russian service (2)?  

If Russian, the Dagestan already has 1x UKSK silo, and Tatarstan only has dual quad Kh-35s.  Updating with 3x UKSK would require very significant structural changes for such small (<2000 ton) vessels. Hardly seems worth the trouble, better to just build new ships?

I suspect this is more about an updated design for export?

I think it is still a project for the Vietnamese Navy, although the composition of the weapons mentioned in the text is not clear to me; 24 "Kalibar" rockets and eight missiles from the air defense system. According to some logic, it should be half and half, that is, 16 "Kalibar" missiles (two UKSK with 8 missiles each) and 16 rockets from the air defense system; probably "Redut". Anti-submarine weapons are not mentioned.
The shipyard in Zelenodolsk also built these corvettes of project 11661 (for export) and small missile ships of project Karakurt 22800 and 21631 Buyan-M for Russian Navy.
Perhaps you are right when you write that these may be only projects that serve to attract new buyers, for example Vietnam, which has already bought 4 frigates (version 3.9 mentioned in the text) and has plans for two more.

A few days ago I reported the news that the Russians are planning to build small missile ships of the project 21635 "Sarsar" with increased strike capabilities, that is, with two UKSKs and a total of 16 missiles. Along with all that comes the marine variant of the Pantsyr system.

They presented various models with increased numbers of VLS for the Gepard class.

It's an export project mainly and russian navy hasn't showed interest in buying more of this class.

GarryB wrote:

Here it only mentions Mariupol shiprepairing yard and the large Kherson shipyard, as Nikolaev (where 3 of the largest shipyards of Soviet Union were located) is still in Ukrainian hands.

The intention is demilitarising the Ukraine so even if all the existing shipyards are rebuilt, they will be rebuilt to build civilian vessels and not military ones.

Those grain terminals have rendered Nikolaev no good for big ships, but then the market for smaller ships is likely bigger anyway.

The grain terminal in the middle of the black sea shipyard  can be dismantled. Rebuilding and modernising that shipyard would cost anyway much less than the new planned supershipyard in kotlin island (Sankt Petersburg).

This does not mean that the kotlin shipyard project must be scrapped, it is only a cost and feasibility comparison.

If Russia have a lot of planned order for both civilian and military fleets maybe they need all of those shipyards, also because they can finally completely stop ordering and building ships abroad.

Russia is doing the military operation there. Kherson is already under russian control and Nikolaev will be next.

At the end of it either Russia win and these regions will be integrated into the russian federation or if they leave Ukraine without gains next step will be the dismemberment of Russia. In that case the shipyards in Sankt Petersburg and maybe Murmansk will be the only remaining in a much smaller Russia, as at least, Kaliningrad, Crimea and the far East will soon be part of foreign countries.

Thus the demilitarisation of Ukraine does not mean that Russia will not keep equipment, bases and possible military industries in the recovered areas of Novorossia that become again fully russian regions.

So Kherson and Nikolayev shipyards will receive a similar treatment as the large Kerch shipyard in Crimea (Zaliv)

Furthermore restarting large ship production there will probably help a lot in recovering the pride and getting the goodwill of the local population.

Back to Nikolaev.

Okean shipyard (the civilian shipyard in Nikolaev) had also a quite large drydock (almost for sure not able to build supertankers and similar, but big enough for most civilian passenger and cargo ships).

And the former communara 61 shipyard was able to build Slava class cruisers 49 years ago (in addition to being one of the oldest russian shipyard ever) (it could even be initially used as repair shipyard initially and maybe they could slowly bring it back to shape having some frigates for export built there.

Yantar in Kaliningrad was helped a lot thanks to the contract for building the second serie of taiwar frigates for India...

Rodion_Romanovic wrote:
At the end of it either Russia win and these regions will be integrated into the russian federation or if they leave Ukraine without gains next step will be the dismemberment of Russia. In that case the shipyards in Sankt Petersburg and maybe Murmansk will be the only remaining in a much smaller Russia, as at least, Kaliningrad, Crimea and the far East will soon be part of foreign countries.

Couldn't agree more.

Unless the big guys in Moscow get their act together soon and blow the shit out of Ukraine from north to south and east to west, Russia as we know today would not exist for long.

GarryB wrote:Half the farm land is owned by western companies now anyway...

Not for long.

One of the first acts of the new (pro-Russian) regime should be to declare these land sales as "unconstitutional" and illegal. The affected lands need to be siezed and returned to the Ukrainain people without compensation being paid to the carpet baggers. Those who have enabled the land theft need to be arrested and prosecuted.

GarryB wrote:Amazing the confidence you have in the west... the EU is more likely to break up than Russia... Russia is fending off attacks by hard core long term enemies (US and UK and France and Germany) trying to pull it apart... the EU is being destroyed by the US, and how stable is the US really?

Building infrastructure in countries that may not be part of Russia is stupid... what was there before is not important because it is mostly gone... there is no incentive to rebuild Antonov for instance as that is only competition that no one wants.



There was plenty of investment in Ukraine in the past by Russia... it didn't make a difference... they still rushed into the arms of the west when they got the chance shouting nazi chant and anti Russia slurs.

We need to see what is going to be the result of this conflict before we plan building cottage industries for them to profit from.

I agree that EU is much more likely to break up than Russia.

I just mean that at this point, if they retire from Ukraine abandoning kherson, Zaporozhye oblast and the Donbass the consequence will be terrible for Russia.

And also stopping the operation before having control of the whole coast until the Danube would be considered a failure too.

Off topic rant start
.
It is not necessary to send them the whole army or to mobilize, or even to finish it within a couple of months...

they can continue with the current pace if they believe it is the correct strategy and it will bring the desired results in the long run...
However canceling the operation and failing in in liberating the whole south including Nikolaev and Odessa regions will be a huge debacle for Russia, and could bring consequences comparable to those that prompted the end of the Russian empire in the middle of WW1.

Off topic rant end

Back to that. Russia should not invest money on industry and infrastructure in the Ukraine if it remains a separate country (e.g even if it was a sort of fake ally like current Bielorussia).

However if the region's are integrated into Russia and Nikolaev becomes legally as Russian as Voronez or Rostov, than it is fundamental to invest there and (slowly) rebuild infrastructure.

Of course this is only valid once the special military operation is ended, the referendums for joining Russia are done and the decisions are approved by the russian Parlament and the russian President.

GarryB wrote:
Big shipyards need orders and should not rely on Russian orders for profit.

The need is there...

Many russian ships for civilian use are still built abroad, and just to make an example a few years ago Pella even took control of a shipyard near Hamburg in Germany, because they wanted a place where it was possible building larger ships.

Big_Gazza wrote:

GarryB wrote:Half the farm land is owned by western companies now anyway...

Not for long.

One of the first acts of the new (pro-Russian) regime should be to declare these land sales as "unconstitutional" and illegal.  The affected lands need to be siezed and returned to the Ukrainain people without compensation being paid to the carpet baggers.  Those who have enabled the land theft need to be arrested and prosecuted.

As the West seemingly found it okay to confiscate yachts and other assets from Russian people, this is a typical case of 'an eye for an eye'. I am betting most land assets have been sold to the US, Bidens and/or Gates to cover the costs of military equipment.

A short report from the Amur shipyard.