Two Project 06340 ice-class cargo ships for island supply laid down in Primorye

At the Livadia Ship Repair Plant, the keels of two Project 06340 vessels were laid simultaneously. According to the press service of the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping, technical supervision of the construction is carried out by engineer-inspectors of the Primorye branch of the Far Eastern branch of RS. The vessels are being built according to the plant's own design and are intended for sea transportation of goods and wheeled vehicles to island and remote coastal territories with the possibility of unloading on an unequipped shore.

Each vessel has a length of 27 meters, a width of 6 meters, and a design draft of 1.2 meters. The class symbol — (KM) Ice3 (hull) Ice1 (machinery) R3 AUT1 — means that the hull is reinforced for independent navigation in light broken ice, the mechanisms allow operation in icy conditions, and a high degree of automation makes it possible to reduce the crew. The laying of the next two units of the series is planned for 2027.

For the supply of the Kuril Islands and remote coastal areas, the ability to operate without pier infrastructure is critically important. The ice class extends the navigation window in the Okhotsk and Japan Seas, where ice persists until April. In fact, a series of four vessels fills the niche of small cargo transports capable of serving the island territories of the Far East year-round.