Rosatom advocates maintaining tariffs and subsidizing icebreaker escort at Northern Sea Route roll-out stage
MOSCOW. June 18 (Interfax) - The Rosatom State Corporation is in favor of maintaining the current cost of icebreaker escorts and subsidizing their tariffs during the Northern Sea Route roll-out stage.
The cost of building icebreakers had increased sharply by 2025 compared to the construction of the first five nuclear icebreakers of Project 22220. Icebreakers are a financed on a 50x50 basis with subsidies from the budget and extra-budgetary funds, and when bank rates are high, extra-budgetary money becomes more expensive and directly affects the icebreaker escort tariff, Rosatom Arctic representative and deputy chair of the State Commission for Arctic Development Vladimir Panov said in an interview with Interfax.
"So Rosatom's position is that it is necessary to maintain the current tariff for icebreaker escort, including for all new and future icebreakers, until NSR investment projects achieve full ramp-up," Panov said.
Rosatom proposes two phases for tariffs for icebreaker escort on the Northern Sea Route. "The first, when projects are just getting underway and reaching their planned capacities - at this point, tariffs are subsidized. The second stage will begin during full NSR roll-out," Panov said.
"It is anticipated that the cargo flow along the Northern Sea Route will reach the baseline of 109 million tonnes by around 2030. Such a volume of cargo transportation will mean that the NSR is fully established and the roll-out is complete. Then it will be possible to introduce a certain fee to transport cargo along the NSR. This fee will offset infrastructure costs allocated from the budget," he said.
"Of course, this is so far a concept of a possible approach to icebreaker escort tariffs on the NSR. The terms for the transition to the second stage have not yet been fine-tuned, this continues to be discussed," Panov said.
Regarding the need to build a merchant Arctic fleet, Panov said that Rosatom, together with shippers, had assessed the required number of vessels. "There are already 30 high Arctic class vessels operating on the NSR, and at least 67 vessels of various types are needed on top of that," he said.
"We see a lot of potential for cooperation with friendly countries. It is important to increase the annual construction of large Arctic class vessels further. The Industry and Trade Ministry has come up with the relevant plans," Panov said.
Following his visit to Murmansk in March 2025, Russian President Vladimir Putin asked gave for decisions to be reached by August 1 to ensure the competitiveness of tariffs for icebreaker escort of vessels along the Northern Sea Route, including, if necessary, subsidizing the cost of icebreaker fleet services, as well as providing other state support measures.
