OREANDA-NEWS. A ceremony to launch the Konstruktor Zhivotovsky tanker was held in the city of Nizhny-Novgorod

The Konstruktor Zhivotovsky is the tenth vessel of RST 27 project funded by Vnesheconombank and  built at the Kranoye Sormovo Shipbuilding Plant plant (incorporated in the United Shipbuilding Corporation) for Shipping Company V.F.Tanker (incorporated VBTH, part of ULC Holding). The tankers are designed for mixed river-sea transportation of crude oil and petroleum products from Russia’s sea ports through export routes.

Vnesheconombank extended the major part of funds for the construction; the total amount of credit line was 153 million US dollars. A decision on Vnesheconombank’s participation in funding the project was made in July 2012.

Shipbuilding industry is among Vnesheconombank’s top-priority lines of activity. This project is financed within Vnesheconombank’s leasing activity. The Bank extends a credit to OJSC VEB-Leasing which acts as a customer (a vessel owner).

The project’s initiator is Transport Assets Management LLC - a managing company of ULC Holding. As of today, 9 tankers were built and transferred to the customer (V.F.Tanker-1 – V.F-Tanker. The tenth tanker – Konstruktor Zhivotovsky is scheduled to be commissioned in May 2013 after completing a test program provided for by a vessel construction contract. The Project RST tankers with six cargo and two slop tanks are designed for mixed river transportation of crude oil and petroleum products (two types of products) including gasoline. Sea deadweight amounts to 6,900 tonnes, river deadweight – 5400 tonnes. In total, 22 tankers are planned to be built for V.F.Tanker shipping company at the Krasnoye Sormovo shipbuilding plant and the Oksk shipyard. The Project RST 27 tanker was included in the list of significant vessels of the British Royal Institution of Naval Architects. The Konstruktor Zhivotovsy tanker is named in honour of outstanding engineer Albert A Zhivotovsky who was a chief designer of the Krasnoye Sormovo Shipbuilding plant for 30 years.