Universal Nuclear Icebreaker “Yakutia” Sets Sail: Russia’s Innovative Project 22220 in Action

The universal nuclear icebreaker “Yakutia” has left its construction mooring at the Baltic Shipyard Osk and is heading to its home port in Murmansk. The vessel will navigate through the Baltic Sea, the Atlantic, and the Barents Sea before docking in a port on the Kola Bay, according to the Osk press service.

For several months, specialists from the shipyard and its subcontractors carried out mooring and sea trials while preparing the icebreaker for its maiden voyage. After being officially commissioned, the vessel joined Russia’s nuclear icebreaker fleet.

“Yakutia” is the fourth vessel of Project 22220, being built at the Baltic Shipyard Osk for the state corporation Rosatom, based on a design by the Iceberg Central Design Bureau. The ship was laid down on May 26, 2020, on the shipyard’s 164th birthday. It was launched on November 22, 2022, and officially delivered to the customer on March 27, 2025.

The icebreaker is powered by a dual-reactor nuclear installation “RITM-200,” with each reactor generating 175 MW of thermal power and a lifespan of 40 years. The Project 22220 icebreakers have a shaft power of 60 MW. Unlike previous generations, these versatile nuclear icebreakers are equipped to escort vessels along both deep-water segments of the Northern Sea Route and in shallow waters.

Project 22220 icebreakers are the largest and most powerful in the world, with the primary mission of ensuring year-round navigation in the western Arctic. Currently, the Baltic Shipyard Osk is also constructing the icebreakers “Chukotka” and “Leningrad,” as well as the multifunctional vessel for nuclear technological services “Vladimir Vorobyov.” In 2025, the icebreaker “Stalingrad” is scheduled to be laid down.