02/22/2022
Largest ever civilian marine reactor vessels to be built for Russian icebreaker
The reactor vessels that will power Russia's largest icebreaker, the “Leader,” are now in production. The Leader will utilize two RITM-400 reactors to generate propeller power of 120 MW, which is twice the amount of the newest icebreakers currently at sea.
With unprecedented size and power for a civilian vessel, Leader, and two future as of yet unnamed icebreakers, will be able to pe*****te ice up to 4.3 meters (14 feet) thick and clear a channel up to 50 meters (164 feet) wide. Their main purpose will be to maintain unobstructed passage of the Northern Sea Route, the development of which has become a Russian national priority.
The new reactor design is designed to be produced for a variety of uses including variants for icebreakers, floating power plants and for use on land. As a scaled up model, these reactor vessels will generate 315 MWt (megawatts thermal) compared with the early reactor vessels that generated 165 MWt, and utilize the same technologies.
The Leader’s two reactors will be placed side-by-side in the center of the ship. Their thermal energy will be converted to electricity by a steam turbine using four 35 MWe generators. This is transmitted to four 30 MW motors to drive its four propellers with a total power of 120 MW, which is twice as much as the latest icebreaker to be launched, the Sibir.
The Leader is being built at the Zvezda Shipbuilding Complex, near Vladivostok. It is expected to enter service sometime in 2027. Two more icebreakers were announced in October 2020, but they have yet to be named.
