Russian shipping company Vodohod and United Shipbuilding Corporation have signed off on building a four-deck passenger cruise vessel of the sea river class, and the category five vessel is planned to be introduced into operation by 2020.
The investment project is expected to expand the horizons of preparation and provision of new touristic products and services on the internal market. It is believed that a high-quality product created from scratch will be in demand by both Russian and international clients.
The new cruise ship is hoped to become a true engine of the cruise market, and will provide the impetus to the development of the port and touristic infrastructure in cities along the route. The new product is expected to be in demand by clients who previously haven’t considered a Russian river cruise as a possible destination.
There are a lack of ships at a suitable level in Russia, and primarily guests from Japan, Middle Eastern countries, Singapore, Taiwan and Latin American countries line the local waters. The liner is planned to operate primarily on the route Moscow Ð St Petersburg route, which is the most popular among foreign guests.
The general features of the project include a length of 141 meters, width of 16.82 meters, passenger capacity of 342, and crew and service staff of 144. The special conditions on the vessel will be created for the comfortable stay of guests with disabilities. The motor ship is designed based on the most modern comfort requirements: the cabins will be provided with ÒFrenchÓ balconies, the size of the standard cabin will be 19 square metres, and size of suite cabin will be 30 square metres.
The new vessel promises to be a modern floating hotel created with use of the most resent technological developments, and equipment of terraces of full value with a panoramic lounge on the bow of the ship.
Funding of the construction is carried out as part of the Russian Federation’s program ÔDevelopment of Shipbuilding for 2013 Ð 2030′ from the Ministry of Industry and Trade. The partners of the transaction are JSC United Shipbuilding Corporation and CJSC Goznak-leasing. The customer is LLC Vodohod, which is a part of UCL Holding. The prime contractor of the contract will be the Shipyard PJSC ÒKrasnoye SormovoÓ in Nizhny Novgorod. Completion of building and testing of the passenger vessel is scheduled for 2019, and finishing and handover to the customer by the beginning of navigation 2020. Granted term of the financing of the contract is 20 years, including construction period of the vessel.
