Lichterovoz "Sevmorput": characteristics and photos

The Soviet lighter ship Sevmorput is a transport icebreaker equipped with an atomic power system of the KLT-40 type. The ship is one of the four largest analogues intended for non-military operations with a nuclear unit. Designed and developed transport in Leningrad (1978, CDB "Baltsuproject"). By order of the USSR government, the ship was built in Kerch at the Zaliv Combine. It was laid in November 1984, launched in February 1986. The official launch of the ship took place in 1988.

History of creation

Likhterovoz Severmorput is the only vessel of the project 10081. There were plans to build a similar swimming facility, but the collapse of the Soviet Union affected the closure of the work on KB "Zaliv". The ship under consideration is designed to transport various cargoes by container to the remote northern regions of the country. Maneuverability of the vessel in ice is carried out at a thickness of up to one meter.

During the first tests, the Severmorput Lighter was operated on the international route along the Odessa-Vietnam-Vladivostok-DPRK route. It is noteworthy that this ship can work in warm waters. The subsequent operation of the vessel was carried out on the Murmansk-Dudinka-Murmansk section. In 2007, Rostekhnadzor specialists tested the nuclear installation of the ship. In conclusion, it is said that the equipment meets regulatory requirements and provides radiation safety.

In August of the same year, the Murmansk Shipping Company announced the conversion of a container ship into a floating drilling vessel. According to the reorientation plan, work on reorienting the container should be made in a year and a half. The main reason for this decision was a low tariff rate in the operation of lighter carriers. This plan was not destined to take place. In the winter of 2008, the re-equipment project was canceled, and the vessel was transferred to the jurisdiction of another operator.

Interesting Facts

In 2008 (August), the Severmorput lighter was finally transferred to the nuclear icebreaking fleet of Atomflot. In the autumn of next year, the general director of the company V. Ruksha said that this vessel is out of work. If the current situation takes place further, it will have to be handed over for disassembly. And this despite the fact that his working potential was at that time no less than 15 years.

The official documentation shows that the nuclear plant should be finally stopped by the end of 2012, the beginning of 2013. Already in June 2013 the nuclear power unit of the ship was completely drowned. At this time, the boat does not end with the boat in question. According to the decree of the General Director of Rosatom S. Kiriyenko, at the end of 2013 work began on the restoration of the nuclear lighter-carrier Severmorput. The plans include the resumption of the functioning of the nuclear installation, the purchase and loading of the relevant fuel. The planned date of commissioning the vessel in full-scale operation is March 2016. The main task of the ship for the future is to develop and develop the shelf of the Pavlovsky ore deposit. As the general director said, the ship will be in demand, since its analogs are not available.

Update

The completion of the ship was intended to replace part of the equipment and engineering elements. The updated "Sevmorput" was a lighter, which was to be equipped with two additional cranes, a new wastewater treatment system, more sophisticated pipelines and pumping units. In addition, there was a modern radar station. The cost of modernization at that time was more than 55 million rubles.

In November 2015 the vessel returned to Murmansk. In May 2016, the modernized ship entered the first voyage, which ran to the island of Kotelny. On board the container ship were building materials and food. At the last moment, the icebreaker "Sevmorput" is the only acting model in its class, used as an engine for an atomic power unit.

Specifications

Below are the main parameters of the technical plan of the ship in question:

• The manufacturer is the Kerch Shipyard.
• Year of manufacture - 1988.
• Displacement - 61,8 thousand tons.
• Length / width / height - 260/32/18 meters.
• The draft is 1180 mm.
• The power unit is the nuclear installation GTZA-684 OM5.
• The power indicator is 39.4 thousand horsepower.
• Control - adjustable screw with four blades.
• The speed limit is 21 knots per hour.
• Load-carrying capacity - 74 lighter or 126 20-feet containers.

Description

The nuclear icebreaker "Sevmorput" is a marine non-self-propelled vessel that is intended for transportation of various types of cargo. At the same time, their processing is provided even in the absence of berths, loading and unloading manipulations are performed, in the event that vessels can not enter the port due to a large draft.

The ship in question has a mass of about 300 tons, thanks to an absolutely hermetic hull, it can be in the water independently, like a barge. A low draft allows you to pull the transport as close to the shore as possible with the help of a suitable tug.

The uniqueness of the vessel lies in the possibility of its operation without the presence of deep-sea quays. This allows you to deliver goods to places that are not completely equipped for such purposes. The holds and decks of the ship allow the transport of up to 74 containers, which are stacked in a special crane in two rows. Using specific grips, the loading device fixes the lighters rigidly. The cargo is discharged to the water through the aft part. If necessary, unloading can be carried out without stopping the vessel.

Power unit

Lichterovoz "Sevmorput", the photo of which is presented above, is equipped with an energy installation that allows an unlimited period of time on the way. The main atomic unit produces steam, and it drives the turbine. As a backup engine is a diesel engine, heating the boiler and issuing about 50 tons of steam per hour.

Container ship is equipped with three turbine generators, capacity of 1700 kW, as well as five emergency analogues, the total power of which is 1400 kW. The ship has a propeller with adjustable pitch, which makes it possible to protect it from breakage when the blades strike against large ice floes. In addition, a nuclear waste incinerator with a capacity of 50 kilograms per hour is provided on the nuclear powered vessel. There is also a system for cleaning and disinfection of sea ice, which provides an autonomous stay for the crew. The team provides a sauna, swimming pool, gym, separate cabins.

Modern History

Likhterovoz "Sevmorput", the characteristics of which are given above - this is the only ship in the world equipped with an atomic installation. Container ship spent a lot of time in the parking lot (from 2007 to 2013). However, the ship did not fall on the write-off, but successfully completed the testing after two years of repair. After completion of the deck and cabins, it is planned to determine the habitual mode of operation for a nuclear-powered vessel. According to domestic and foreign experts, Sevmorput is a real breakthrough of the 21st century.

The ship was erected in 1988, is able to practically provide the entire northern delivery in the territory of the Russian Arctic. Now the transport lighter is ready to go on polar expeditions, thus its resource will make not less than 15 years.

In conclusion

Civil use of lighter carriers began to develop actively in the 70s of the last century. This is due to the activation of the development of the polar latitudes, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid to countries in need. The main reason for the decline in the operation of such ships was the collapse of the USSR and the lack of centralized supply. Military bases were disbanded, and cartographic surveys of remote northern territories were discontinued. It should be noted that for the whole history of service the nuclear lighter ship Sevmorput transported more than 1.5 million tons of cargo.