Havyard to name Russian icebreaker duo

A double naming ceremony will be held on Saturday for two icebreaking offshore vessels which will be delivered to Russian shipping company Femco, Havyard Ship Technology said on Tuesday.

The two sister vessels, named Pomor and Normann, are two of three Havyard 843 ICE icebreaking offshore vessels ordered by Femco from Havyard.

The first vessel, named Aleut, was delivered to Femco last autumn. Femco is a Russian privately-owned company specializing in operations of anchor handling vessels.

Havyard said that scheduled festivities on Saturday will include an open boat session and a naming ceremony. The company added that the two vessels would be in operation on a contract for Exxon Neftegas on the oilfields offshore Sakhalin. In order to get there, the vessels will embark on a voyage through The Northeast Passage, with its deadline before the arrival of winter.

Executive Vice President of Havyard Ship Technology, Lasse Stokkeland, said: “We hope to further develop this relationship and our knowledge regarding construction of vessels for Arctic areas.

“We have the competence and technology attractive for shipowners operating in these areas, and in addition to the Havyard 843 ICE design, we also have other icebreaking designs in our portfolio, enabling us to quickly adapt these designs to the needs of the customers.”

The two vessels are designed for extremely challenging conditions. Both are constructed according to DNVs ice class Icebreaker Ice-10, with classifications demanding capabilities of breaking up to 1-metre-thick, one-year-old ice. There are also specific requirements regarding hull strength, use of material, rudder and steering systems, propellers and propulsion system.

The vessels are 86.7 meters in length and 19.5 meters in width. They can reach a speed of 16 knots, accommodate 53 persons and have a bollard pull of 204 tonnes.

The icebreaker pair is constructed with class notation Winterized Cold (-30). As such, these vessels are constructed for work in temperatures as low as minus 30 C degrees without freezing up. This means vital safety equipment and environment are protected against ice and frost at shielding, incorporation, and electric heating or melting.

Ivan Lyshko of Femco said of the vessel currently in operation: “Aleut solves its tasks. The first winter of operation was a mild one, but there’s no doubt that the ship has good seakeeping capabilities. When winters become hard, and the ice is thick, the ship is forceful enough to meet these rough conditions.”

Havyard Design & Solutions has delivered design and work drawings, Havyard Power & Systems has delivered electrical engineering, automation, and alarm system, in addition to Havyard Concept Bridge. Moreover, Norwegian Electric Systems has delivered electro-engines, generators, and switchboard panels.