Russia Completes Construction of the Most Powerful Marine Reactor RITM-400 for Icebreaker “Russia”

AO “ZIO-Podolsk,” part of the engineering division of the State Corporation “Rosatom,” has completed the production of the RITM-400 reactor installation for the nuclear icebreaker “Russia” of project 10510 “Leader.” The latest reactor, named “Ilya Muromets,” has a thermal power of 315 MW and is the most powerful marine reactor installation in the world, as reported by the press service of Rosatom’s engineering division.

The completion of the first RITM-400 reactor was announced by Valentina Matviyenko, Chair of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, and Alexey Likhachev, General Director of Rosatom. The ceremony was broadcasted in the Federation Council, where an exhibition dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the nuclear industry was opened on May 20.

The design and layout of the RITM-400 reactor installation are based on maximum unification with the RITM-200 reactor, which has proven itself on the nuclear icebreakers of project 22220. It is also designed using a dual-loop scheme, with four steam generators integrated into the active zone’s casing.

“The completion of the RITM-400 reactor is a significant event for the icebreaker fleet, for Rosatom, and for our entire country. The reactor installations of the next-generation nuclear icebreaker “Russia” will enable it to break through ice thicker than 4 meters. We decided to name each of the two reactors, which will endow the icebreaker with unprecedented power, after Russian heroes – Ilya Muromets and Dobrynya Nikitich. These legendary heroes performed feats in the name of Russia, and the new reactors named after them will help the icebreaker “Russia” conquer the harsh Arctic ice,” noted Alexey Likhachev during the ceremony.

The main feature of the RITM-400 reactor installation is the doubling of reactor power, allowing the icebreaker of project 10510 to navigate through ice up to 4 meters thick for the escort of large-tonnage vessels. The planned power on the shafts with two reactor installations is 120 MW.

“Today we completed the production of the first RITM-400 for the icebreaker “Russia,” and in a couple of months, we will finish the second. Both installations will be sent to the shipyard for installation on the icebreaker ‘Russia’ and will serve as a gift from Rosatom’s engineers for the 80th anniversary of the nuclear industry. The completion of this project opens new opportunities for the development of the Northern Sea Route,” added Igor Kotov, head of Rosatom’s engineering division.

It is worth noting that the nuclear icebreaker of project 10510 is a Russian universal dual-draft nuclear icebreaker with a nuclear power installation. The main task of this project is to ensure year-round navigation along the Northern Sea Route and conduct expeditions in the Arctic. The increased width of the hull is intended to accommodate large-tonnage vessels. The project is designed by the Central Design Bureau “Iceberg,” and the customer is FSUE “Atomflot.”

The contract between FSUE “Atomflot” and the shipyard SSK “Zvezda” was signed on April 3, 2020. The construction of the lead icebreaker began on July 6, 2020, with the first metal cutting for the construction of the nuclear icebreaker of project 10510 taking place at SSK “Zvezda” in Bolshoy Kamen.

The keel-laying of the nuclear icebreaker took place on July 5, 2021. On May 20, 2024, the First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Denis Manturov, announced the postponement of the delivery date for the nuclear icebreaker “Russia” to 2030.