“The disruption of economic links with unfriendly Western countries has turned the flow of products made by exporters towards the East, and dramatically increased the pressure on the Baikal-Amur Railway and Trans-Siberian Railways. The Eastern railway system lacks sufficient carrying capacity - and this deficit is estimated at 100 million tons for 2022. The Northern Sea Route is able to - and is to - supply some of the needed transportation capacity,” added Yury Trutnev, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation and Presidential Plenipotentiary Envoy to the Far Eastern Federal District.
According to the plan for the infrastructure development of the Northern Sea Route, 37 ships are to be built (8 icebreakers, 16 rescue vessels and 13 hydrographical vessels). Two of these, the Arktika and Sibir icebreakers, have already been built, and are operating along the Northern Sea Route. In November 2022 the Ural nuclear icebreaker is to be launched.
According to information provided by the Rosatom state corporation, in order to ensure the consistent operation of the Northern Sea Route an addition 6 icebreakers, 16 rescue vessels and a nuclear maintenance vessel need to be constructed. Moreover, in order to implement the investment projects in the Arctic, another 32 ice-class transport vessels are to be built.
A year-round Arctic research station, Snezhinka, will be constructed in Yamal, using advanced technologies in clean energy production and life-support systems. The station will be located in the Jade Valley in the Yamal Nenets Autonomous Okrug, and will be the first scientific and education complex in the world to be based on using hydrogen energy. Construction is to begin next year. The test launch of the project is scheduled for 2024. The main part of the work on the development of the Snezhinka station will be performed by the Russian Ministry of Science and Higher Education and the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (MIPT). The technologies which are to be used in the construction of the station are currently being tested in the MIPT’s test facility.
During the meeting of the State Commission for Arctic Development, the participants discussed the issue of subsidized loans for the purpose of implementing investment projects in the AZRF. In order to support business a subsidized loan program for investors implementing projects in the Arctic was developed. A resolution was approved on the possibility of providing subsidies totaling 1.4 billion rubles to five investment projects in 2022. The projects to be supported are the development of the Kharbey oil and gas field in the Yamal Nenets Autonomous Okrug, the construction of an airport complex in Novy Urengoy, the creation of a gas and chemicals complex in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, the construction of the Lavna coal transshipment complex in Murmansk seaport, and the development of the Syradasaisk coal field in Krasnoyarsk Region. A total of 573 billion rubles will be invested in these projects. Their implementation will involve the creation of more than 2,000 jobs.