By
Alex Smith |
Energy company Gazprom has celebrated the keel laying ceremony for the first LNG-powered passenger ship in Russia, Chaika LNG, at Zelenodosk Plant’s shipyard in Zelenodolsk, Russia.
The event was attended by representatives from the shipyard, Gazprom and the Russian government, including Rustam Minnikhanov, President of the Republic of Tatarstan; Andrey Dimitriev, director general of Gazprom Gazomotornoye Toplivo; and Alexander Karpov, director general of Zelenodolsk Plant.
Chaika LNG will be used for passenger river voyages, including several tourist routes. She is the first vessel to be built as part of a pilot project established by an action plan signed by Gazprom and Zelenodosk Plant in October 2019. The ship, which will be able to accommodate 170 people, is expected to launch by the end of the year.