ST. PETERSBURG, May 26. /TASS/. The Ivan Frolov research\survey vessel (RSV) that is being built at the Admiralty Shipyards in St. Petersburg, will make her maiden voyage in 2028, Russia's Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology Alexander Kozlov told the Nevsky International Ecological Congress on Thursday.
"We have started this year with laying a new research/survey vessel - the Ivan Frolov," he said. "That will be five-in-one: a tanker, icebreaker, research, passenger and cargo vessel. It will be built here, in St. Petersburg, at the Admiralty Shipyards. The Ivan Frolov's maiden voyage is due in 2028."
Earlier reports said the vessel would be the biggest vessel in its class. The Russian government will invest in her building 39.7 billion rubles ($496 million).
The United Shipbuilding Corporation's press service said on Thursday the Ivan Frolov, named after the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute's former director, would become the mainstay of the institute's fleet.
"The building of a new vessel is an important and expected project," the institute's Director Alexander Makarov told TASS. "The vessel will expand our opportunities and will make our work more effective."
"We can see the work is moving well, and quite soon the Ivan Frolov RSV - the biggest research vessel in the world - will become the mainstay of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute's fleet," he added.
Earlier, the institute's director said the scientists hoped the new research/survey vessel Ivan Frolov would be commissioned in 2028.
About vessel
The Ivan Frolov will replace the outdated Akademik Fedorov vessel, built in 1987. The Ivan Frolov will be about 165 meters long, the displacement - about 25,000 tons. She will house up to 20 laboratories, a hangar for two helicopters and a helipad. The hull will be of the Arc7 class, which means the vessel would not require icebreakers to pass through difficult polar ice. The vessel will have domestic parts and equipment. The crew and special personnel will be 240 people. The vessel will be operated by the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute (AARI). The Ivan Frolov will enter service for at least 30 years.
Ivan Frolov (February 4, 1949 - December 17, 2020) was a geographer, oceanologist, glaciologist, polar explorer, corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, winner of the Otto Schmidt Prize. From 1992 to 2017, Frolov worked as director of the Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute, the oldest research institution in Russia, engaged in comprehensive studies of the Earth's polar regions.
About congress
The 10th Nevsky International Ecological Congress is running in St. Petersburg on May 25-26 under the slogan Ecology: A Right, Not a Privilege. The event will gather 900 delegates only in the face-to-face format. More than 40 countries have confirmed participation in the event.