Russia's Okskaya Shipyard has begun conducting sea trials of a new rescue tug ordered by the Russian Marine Rescue Service, the Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transportation (Rosmorrechflot) confirmed recently.
Designed by local naval architecture firm Nordic Engineering, Pechak belong to the Project NE025 series of multi-role tugs that will perform duties including towing of non-self-propelled pontoons, salvage, installation and maintenance of buoys, anchor handling, maritime safety patrols, cargo transport, dredging support, oil spill response, and firefighting.
In the summer and autumn months, the tug will be able to independently navigate through thin first-year Arctic ice up to 80 cm thick, In the winter-spring period, it can navigate through ice up to 60 cm thick. In finer ice conditions of freezing non-Arctic seas, the vessel can be operated year-round.
Following delivery, Pechak will be deployed at one of three ports that lie along the Northern Sea Route, providing assistance to commercial vessels that sail through the route.
Design work on the Project NE025 tugs was done in compliance with Russian Maritime Register of Shipping rules including Arc4 ice class requirements. The vessels’ construction is within the framework of the Northern Sea Route infrastructure development plan for the period up to 2035.