The Russian icebreaking container vessel Monchegorsk, built in 2008, has returned to the port of Dudinka from a successful commercial test voyage from Murmansk to Shanghai via the Northern Sea Route. The vessel is owned by the Russian mining company Norilsk Nickel, stating that this is the shortest route for shipping the company’s products to the consumers in the Far East. The Monchegorsk is the first vessel owned by the company to sail through the eastern part of the Northern Sea Route without ice-breaker assistance.
The Russian icebreaking container vessel Monchegorsk. Photo: Aker Arctic
The Monchegorsk is designed by Aker Arctic in Finland and is of ”Double Acting Ship” type, moving stern first in difficult ice conditions. The machinery is diesel-electric and she is propelled by an Azipod unit. Norilsk Nickel owns five vessels of this type and a sixth vessel will be introduced in 2011. This series was developed to replace the Finnish-built Arctic cargo vessel type SA-15 from the 1980s.
