The
cost to repair and modernize the Yekaterinburg, a Russian nuclear submarine
damaged by fire late last December, could total 900 million rubles ($30
million), a representative of United Shipbuilding Corporation said on
Monday.
“Preliminary costs of repairs and modernization of the Yekaterinburg
nuclear powered submarine are estimated between 600 million and 900
million rubles, depending on the price of the instruments and mechanisms
that will be installed in the new hydro acoustic complex,” the
USC representative said.
Some media reports previously said the costs would exceed 1 billion
rubles but Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin denied the reports.
Rogozin said the submarine would be repaired and re-enter service in
summer 2014. |
|
On December 29, the outer
hull of the Yekaterinburg, a Delta-class nuclear submarine, caught fire
during repairs at a shipyard in northwest Russia's Murmansk Region.
Seven crewmembers and two responders were injured as they battled the
fire, which was put out the following day.
There was no radiation leak because the reactors had been shut down
before repairs began.
The submarine’s hydro acoustic system was disabled by the fire
and will need to be replaced before it is brought back into service.
Delta-class submarines have an outer skin of anechoic rubber, designed
to absorb sound from sonars to make the boat harder to detect, that
can burn in a dry environment. The boat has a double hull of thick steel,
however, which would protect its interior from external fire.
The repairs are scheduled to start this summer.
|
