Russia: Nerpa Shipyard

To return to the main Northern Fleet entry, see the Northern Fleet file.

LOCATION:  Snezhnogorsk (Murmansk-60), Olenya Bay [1]
Address: SRZ "Nerpa," Snezhnogorsk, Murmansk Oblast 184680
Telephone: (81530) 6-05-96
Fax: (81530) 6-05-96
E-mail: nerpa@com.mels.ru[2]
Sources:
[1] Geir Honneland and Anne-Kristin Jorgensen, "Cross-Border Perspectives on a North Russian Gateway," Post-Soviet Geography and Economics, Vol. 40, No. 1, 1999, pp. 44-61.
[2] Nerpa Web Site, http://www.srznerpa.newmail.ru/main1.htm. {Updated 7/26/99 JET, 8/1/00 YF}
HOMEPAGE: http://www.srznerpa.newmail.ru/main1.htm {Entered 8/1/00 YF}
SUBORDINATION: Russian Shipbuilding Agency
[Russian Government Decree No. 878, Voprosy Rossiyskogo agentstva po sudostroyeniyu, 30 July 1999; in The Legislation in Russia, http://law.optima.ru.] {Updated 2/10/2000 CC}
ADMINISTRATION:
General Director: Pavel Grigorevich Steblin
[G. Smirnova, Russian Television Network, 11 June 1995; in "Murmansk Submarine Dismantling Facility Profiled," FBIS-SOV-95-114, 11 June 1995.]
First Deputy Director: Aleksandr Nikolayevich Titarenko
[Government Decree No. 175, O prisuzhdenii premii Pravitelstva Rossiyskoy Federatsii v oblasti nauki i tekhniki, 29 February 2000; in Rossiyskaya gazeta, 11 March 2000; in National News Service Website, http://www.nns.ru.] {Entered 8/2/00 CC}
Deputy Director: Nikolay Zlamen
[Vladimir Gundarov, "Russian Submarines Will Perish In the Jaws of American 'Sharks'," Krasnaya zvezda, 12 November 1994, p. 5; in "US Donates Submarine Dismantling Equipment," FBIS-SOV-94-220, 12 November 1994.]
ACTIVITIES:
Nerpa is a START I-declared SSBN dismantlement facility.  Equipment from the United States for the dismantlement of nuclear submarines has been supplied to the Nerpa naval shipyard from Hughes Aircraft Systems International.[1,2]  The Zvezdochka State Machine-Building Enterprise and Nerpa are scheduled to dismantle 15 Northern Fleet SSBNs under the Strategic Offensive Arms Elimination project of the US Defense Department's Cooperative Threat Reduction Program.[3]  Nerpa is mostly engaged in repair, maintenance, and dismantlement of second generation nuclear-powered submarines.  The facility has a dry dock and a floating dock equipped for defueling and preparing submarines for fresh fuel, and equipment for transferring spent fuel to Malina-class service ships.  Nerpa also has storage facilities for solid radioactive waste, which are full.  In 1996, Nerpa facilities contained 200 cubic meters of solid radioactive waste and 170 cubic meters of liquid waste.[4]
Sources:
[1] Evy Ann Midttun, "The Murmansk Corridor," International Affairs, Vol. 43, No. 4, 1997, p. 84.
[2] "Bellona Factsheet No. 88: Temporary Storage Facility on Kola," The Bellona Foundation, online edition, http://www.bellona.no/e/fakta/fakta88.htm, 9 February 1998.
[3] James Clay Moltz, interview with U.S. Defense Department official, Defense Threat Reduction Agency, Dulles Airport, Virginia, 14 January 1999.
[4] Thomas Nilsen, Igor Kudrik and Aleksandr Nikitin, "Bellona Report 1: The Russian Northern Fleet," The Bellona Foundation, 28 August 1996, section 5.5. {Updated 7/22/99 TR}
MPC&A:
A 12 December 1997 Protocol, signed by both the Russian Navy and the US Department of Energy, added Nerpa's PM-12 fuel transfer ship to the DOE MPC&A program.  MPC&A upgrades, scheduled to be complete by 1 May 2000, are to include the installation of improved radio communications, a guard force aboard ship, and improved security in the storage area, including the use of camera surveillance and alarm systems.
Sources:
[1] "MPC&A Program Strategic Plan," US Department of Energy, Office of Nonproliferation and National Security, January 1998, p. 17.
[2] NISNP Correspondence with MPC&A task force personnel, January 2000, RUS000100.{Entered 2/10/2000 CC}
 
NERPA DEVELOPMENTS:

10/9/2003: GERMANY ALLOCATES €300 MILLION FOR DISMANTLEMENT AND REACTOR STORAGE ASSISTANCE
On 9 October 2003, Minatom and the German Ministry of Economics and Labor signed an agreement in Yekaterinburg on the provision of assistance for the safe disposal of nuclear-powered submarines in Northwest Russia. Germany has committed €300 million to the project in 2003-08. These funds will be spent refurbishing nuclear submarine dismantlement facilities at Nerpa Shipyard, building an up-to-date storage facility for submarine reactor compartments and a low- and intermediate-level radioactive waste conditioning facility at Sayda Bay, repairing a floating dock that will be used to tow reactor compartments, providing a computer-assisted waste monitoring system for Sayda Bay, and helping to clear the bay of shipwrecks. During the first stage of the project, the submarines and three-compartment modules currently stored afloat in Sayda Bay will be towed to Nerpa, where the reactor compartments will be cut out, given a biological shield, and welded shut. Other protective measures will also be undertaken to ensure that the reactor compartments do not threaten the environment. They will then be towed back to Sayda and stored at the new onshore facility. For more information, see the 10/9/2003 entry in the Naval Foreign Assistance Developments file. 

10/8/2003: NERPA CONTRACT WITH GERMANY DRAWN UP FOR STORAGE SITE
On 8 October 2003, Nerpa Shipyard Deputy Director for International and Commercial Affairs Oleg Yerin reported that a group of German specialists investigating a possible contract between Germany and the Nerpa Shipyard for the construction at Sayda Bay of a regional storage site for reactors removed from decommissioned nuclear submarines had completed their on-site work. Negotiations had been underway for seven months and, as planned, the October 8 meeting resulted in the text of the contract--which has not yet been finalized--being drawn up.

["Germaniya pomozhet obespechit radiatsionnuyu bezopasnost na Kolskom poluostrove," Interfax, 8 October 2003.] {Entered 11/10/2003 SLK} 

6/9/2003: FOREIGN ASSISTANCE FOR SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT AND REACTOR STORAGE
According to Severnaya subotnaya gazeta, representatives of the German and British Ministries of Economy and Labor are to visit the Nerpa Shipyard. These officials will examine the shipyard’s capabilities with respect to the planned dismantlement of Russian submarines. [For more information on British involvement in submarine dismantlement, see the Global Partnership Funding Commitments page.]

One of the topics to be discussed with German specialists will be the construction of a land-based storage complex in Sayda Bay for reactor compartments from dismantled submarines. [For more information on German assistance, see the Russia: International Assistance Programs: Germany file.]
["V Sayda-gube postroyat kompleks khraneniya reaktornykh otsekov utilisirovannykh podlodok," Regions.ru Web Site, http://www.regions.ru, 9 June 2003; in Integrum Techno, http://www.integrum.com.] {Entered 6/30/2003 RS}

3/6/2003: VICTOR-CLASS SUBMARINE DEFUELED
On 6 March 2003, Interfax reported that the unloading of spent nuclear fuel from the reactors of a Victor-class second-generation general-purpose submarine at Nerpa had been successfully completed.
["Spetsialisty 'Nerpy' vygruzili OYaT iz atomokhoda klassa 'Viktor'," Interfax, 6 March 2003.] {Entered 3/26/2003 AV}

10/31/2002: NERPA'S FUTURE DISCUSSED
On 31 October 2002, the future of Nerpa was discussed at a meeting held between Russian Shipbuilding Agency head Vladimir Pospelov, Murmansk Oblast Governor Yuriy Yevdokimov, and Northern Fleet Commander Gennadiy Suchkov. Meeting participants expected that after two or three years Nerpa might begin dismantling general-purpose submarines as part of a new program under the G8 Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction. As of late 2002, the dismantlement of submarines under the CTR program was coming to an end.  Additional funds are needed to keep Nerpa running.[1,2]
Sources:
[1] Nikolay Sigin, "Delovye vstrechi," Murmanskiy vestnik, No. 213, 2 November 2002; in Integrum Techno, http://afnet.integrum.ru
[2] "Murmanskaya oblast. Sudoremontnyy zavod 'Nerpa' nuzhdayetsya v podpitke do nachala realizatsii programmy '10 na 10 cherez 10'," MurmanNews.Ru, 1 November 2002; in http://afnet.integrum.ru. {Entered 3/14/2003 AV}

9/5/2002: NERPA MAY FACE BANKRUPTCY
On 5 September 2002, Bellona reported, with reference to NTV, that the Nerpa Shipyard may go bankrupt.  To date, all submarine dismantlement operations have been financed through the Cooperative Threat Reduction program. Nerpa dismantled six nuclear submarines in 10 years. The head of Nerpa has proposed dismantling old general-purpose submarines, which are a major threat to the environment. However, these submarines are not perceived as a threat to US security and cannot be dismantled under current rules governing the CTR program. Nerpa officials hope that Norway might fund their dismantlement.
["Nerpa Shipyard Can Go Bankrupt Without US Money," Bellona Web Site, http://www.bellona.no, 5 September 2002.] {Entered 3/13/2003 AV}

9/5/2002: NERPA COMPLETES FIRST FOREIGN COMMERCIAL CONTRACT
On 5 September 2002, Novosti-online reported that Nerpa had successfully completed its first international project. The shipyard constructed a 36-meter floating dock with a 10-meter bridge for Norway. The gross weight of the entire structure is 40 tons. The floating dock will be anchored in the Norwegian seaport of Vardø for mooring small coastal ships, and will start operating during the third week of September. Norway has already placed a second order with Nerpa.
["Norvezhskiy zakazchik ostalsya dovolen," Rybnaya stolitsa, 5 September 2002, p. 2; in "Na Snezhnogorskom sudoremontnom zavode 'Nerpa' proizoshlo vazhnoye sobytiye - priyezzhali norvezhskiye zakazchiki," Novosti-online, 5 September 2002; in Integrum Techno, http://www.integrum.com.] {Entered 3/14/2003 AV}

6/5/2002: CTR PROGRAM AT NERPA TO END IN JUNE 2002
On 6 May 2002, Nerpa Chief Engineer Rostislav Rimdenok told Interfax that the shipyard is expected to complete its participation in the Cooperative Threat Reduction program by dismantling a Kalmar-class [NATO name 'Delta III'] SSBN in June 2002. Nerpa would like the program to continue but, according to Rimdenok, the US side is only interested in financing dismantlement of third-generation Russian nuclear submarines. This is not acceptable to the Russian military as these boats form the backbone of the Russian Navy. Instead, the Russians would like to receive assistance in the dismantlement of decommissioned first-generation submarines. Of 57 such submarines, only nine have been defueled and two scrapped. The United States, however, plans to finance completion of a nuclear defueling facility at Sevmash in Severodvinsk instead, where it will continue work on SSBNs of more recent vintage.
[Agenstvo voyennykh novostey, 6 May 2002; in "Intl Nuclear Submarine Disposal Program Wraps Up in Murmansk," FBIS Document CEP200202596000115.] {Entered 10/5/2002 EF}
 
4/26/2002: KURSK ARRIVES AT NERPA FOR DISMANTLEMENT
On 26 April 2002, the Kursk submarine arrived at the Nerpa Shipyard, where it is expected to be dismantled in the fall of 2002. Before scrapping begins, the seven P-700 Granit [NATO name SS-N-19 'Shipwreck'] cruise missiles remaining on board will be removed from the Kursk's damaged launch tubes. Then the submarine will be defueled and the vessel's hull will be scrapped.[1] It is unclear how this work will be financed as the Nerpa Shipyard has not yet received any money for the dismantlement. In addition, according to the Murmansk Oblast legislative assembly, the Russian Ministry of Defense still owes the shipyard in Roslyakovo about 150 million rubles (about $4.8 million as of 26 April 2002) for prior clean-up work done on the Kursk.[2]
Sources:
[1] Radio Rossii, 26 April 2002; in "Russian Nuclear Submarine Kursk Arrives at Nerpa Repair Yard," FBIS Document CEP20020426000292.
[2] Interfax, 26 April 2002; in "Defense Ministry Owes R150 Million to Roslyakovo Plant for Kursk Work," FBIS Document CEP20020426000309. {Entered 4/30/2002 EF}

3/28/2002: K-19 TO BE SCRAPPED JUST AS MOVIE ABOUT TRAGEDY SET TO BE RELEASED
On 28 March 2002, the K-19 nuclear submarine was sent to the Nerpa Shipyard for dismantlement. The ship was decommissioned and its reactor removed in the 1970s; it has been in Ara Bay since 1990.The ship's history, which earned it the nickname "Hiroshima," includes a 1961 reactor accident that killed eight members of the crew, and a 1972 fire that killed another 28. Shortly after the second accident the K-19 was decommissioned from the Northern Fleet. In July 2002, an American movie about the accident, made by National Geographic, will be released, starring Harrison Ford as former Soviet Navy Captain Nikolay Zateyev. [1,2,3]
[1] "Legendaraya podlodka K-19 otpravlena na utilizatsiyu," Interfax, 28 March 2002.
[2] "Plavuchaya 'Khirosima' otpravlena na utilizatsiyu," Izvestiya, 29 March 2002.
[3] "Nuclear Submarine Sent for Scrapping," RIA-Novosti, 28 March 2002; in FBIS Document CEP20020328000135. {Entered on 6/19/2002 TM}

3/19/2002: NIZHNIY NOVGOROD NUCLEAR ATTACK SUBMARINE TO RETURN TO ACTIVE SERVICE IN THE NORTHERN FLEET
On 19 March 2002, the press service of the Nizhniy Novgorod Oblast administration announced that according to Admiral Gennadiy Suchkov, commander of the Northern Fleet, the Kondor-class [NATO name 'Sierra II'] SSN Nizhniy Novgorod would not be dismantled and would return to the Northern Fleet. Since December 2000, when the submarine arrived at the Nerpa Shipyard, the navy has been considering dismantling the submarine. Suchkov also said that repair of the Nizhniy Novgorod had begun.
[Agenstvo voyennykh novostey, 19 March 2002; in "Northern Fleet to Get Back Nizhny Novgorod Nuclear Submarine," FBIS Document CEP20020319000129.] {Entered 4/30/2002 EF}

1/24/2002: SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT PROCEEDS AS PLANNED
On 24 January 2002, Deputy Director of Nerpa's International and Marketing Department Oleg Yenin said that a visiting US Department of Defense delegation headed by Michael Cool confirmed that dismantlement of a Murena-M class [NATO name 'Delta II'] SSBN was proceeding as scheduled. The submarine has been defueled and has had its SLBM silos cut out.
[ITAR-TASS, 24 January 2002; in "Russia Dismantles Decommissioned Delta-2 Type Nuclear Submarine," FBIS Document CEP20020124000392.] {Entered 1/29/2002 EF}
 
12/13/2001: SERVICE SHIP COLLIDES WITH SUBMARINE AT NERPA
On 13 December 2001, the nuclear service ship Imandra collided with the diving planes of a submarine, which was laid up at Nerpa shipyard. The resulting hole in the ship's hull was fixed by 15 December. No radioactive discharge was reported as the result of the incident.
["Nuclear Powered Icebreakers. Imandra collided with laid-up submarine," Bellona: Nuclear Chronicle from Russia, http://www.bellona.no, 21 December 2001.] {Entered 3/21/2003 AV}

2/17/2001: CONSTRUCTION OF SOLID RADIOACTIVE WASTE COMPACTING FACILITY AT NERPA DISCUSSED
According to a 17 February 2001 article in Krasnaya zvezda, attempts to obtain funds for building a solid radioactive waste compacting facility at Nerpa are being made in Murmansk Oblast. The facility would allow solid radioactive waste to be reduced six-fold.  At present, $20,000 are needed to bury just one cubic meter of radioactive waste.
["Tam, za polyarnym krugom," Krasnaya zvezda, No. 032, 17 February 2001; in Integrum Techno, http://www.integrum.com.] {Entered 3/17/2003 AV}

10/2/2000: PM-12 NUCLEAR FUEL TRANSFER SHIP SECURITY SYSTEM MODERNIZED
On 2 October 2000, the US Department of Energy (DOE) announced that modernization of security systems on the PM-12 service ship, based at Nerpa Shipyard, had been completed. The ship conducts refueling for nuclear submarines and icebreakers. The upgrade improved protection against theft or diversion of nuclear materials aboard the ship.[1,2] In 1999, a similar modernization was completed on PM-63, based in Severodvinsk. One more service ship is scheduled for security enhancement. The work is being done as part of cooperation between the DOE and the Russian Federation.[1]
Sources:
[1] "SShA okazali sodeystviye Rossii v uluchshenii na odnom iz voyennykh korabley Severnogo flota sistemy smeny yadernogo topliva dlya podvodnykh lodok," ITAR-TASS, 3 October 2000; in Integrum Techno, http://www.integrum.ru.
[2] "US Energy Department and Russian Navy Complete Security Upgrades of Submarine Service Ship," Department of Energy Press Release, 2 October 2000. {Entered 5/23/2001 EF}
 
3/20/2000: SPENT FUEL STORAGE FACILITY MAY BE BUILT AT NERPA
Minatom has proposed building a temporary spent nuclear fuel storage facility at Nerpa Shipyard.  Nerpa is considered to be one of the best potential locations for a new modular dry storage facility, which is being planned by the four-state Industrial Group as part of the Federal Environmental Spent Nuclear Fuel Facility in Northwest Russia project.  [For more information on the Industrial Group project see the Other Multinational Programs entry in the Naval Foreign Assistance section as well as the 5/28/98 entry and 10/29/97 entry in the Mayak Spent Fuel Reprocessing Developments section.]  Nerpa already has equipment for removal of spent fuel from submarine reactors, and employs many workers experienced in handling spent nuclear fuel.  However, Minatom is also considering the Gremikha Naval Base and Polyarninskiy Shipyard as possible nuclear fuel storage sites; it is unlikely that storage facilities will be established at all three locations.
[Thomas Nilsen, "Mayak Spent Fuel Storage Moves to Kola," Nuclear Chronicle from Russia online edition, http://www.bellona.no/imaker, 20 March 2000.] {Entered 8/1/00 YF}
 
12/99:  CIVILIAN SHIP IMANDRA DEFUELS VICTOR-II NUCLEAR SUBMARINE K-476 AT NERPA
For more information, please see the 12/1999 entry in the Northern Fleet: Facilities: Atomflot file.
{Entered 5/24/2000, GD}
 
8/99:  US PROMISES RUSSIA $15 MILLION FOR SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT AT NERPA
For details, please see the 8/99 entry in the Foreign Assistance Developments file.
 
5/18/98: WORKERS STRIKE
Female workers from Nerpa's galvanization workshop began a hunger strike on 14 May 1998.  Workers from the transport workshop joined the strike, which has immobilized the shipyard.  The Nerpa shipyard has not paid workers for eight months because the Ministry of Defense still owes more than 74 million rubles ($12 million) to Nerpa for repairs completed on nuclear submarines.
[Vesti newscast, 18 May 1998; in "Russian TV Shows Striking Subyard," FBIS-UMA-98-139.] {Entered 9/22/98 JET}  

5/98: CONTRACT AWARDED TO NERPA SHIPYARD
The Defense Special Weapons Agency has named Nerpa as the only facility that meets the standards for information, resources, and expertise required for a contract to dismantle one nuclear submarine, a Delta-class SSBN.  The contract also provides for the off-loading and shipment of the nuclear fuel from this submarine to the Mayak storage site.  This contract is part of the CTR program.  Please see the Naval Foreign Assistance Section and the Cooperative Threat Reduction files for more information.
["SLBM Launcher and SSBN Dismantlement in Russia," Post-Soviet Nuclear & Defense Monitor, 12 May 1998, p. 7.] {Entered 7/30/98 HA}
 
5/5/98: WASTE FACILITY FOR MURMANSK OBLAST
On 5 May 1998, Acting Minister of Atomic Energy Yevgeniy Adamov and Murmansk Oblast Governor Yuriy Yevdokimov signed an agreement providing for a Minatom state enterprise for radioactive waste and spent fuel storage to be established in Murmansk Oblast.  Vladimir Dovgan, the oblast Industry, Transportation, and Communications Committee chairman, reported that the waste facility will be based at the Nerpa shipyard. Nerpa has equipment and personnel capable of scrapping decommissioned nuclear submarines.  Northern Fleet spent fuel storage bases and various specialized companies like Atomflot will be involved in the new enterprise.  Dovgan reported that the Norwegian government is willing to participate in the project and that English, French, and German organizations have offered financial support to help solve the problem of radioactive waste storage. Minatom agrees that this funding must go directly to Murmansk Oblast.  First Deputy Minister of Defense Nikolay Mikhaylov is seeking a way to allow international experts to inspect Russian nuclear fuel storage facilities and independently determine the operational costs at these facilities.  For several years, Murmansk Oblast has been unable to receive consent on this matter from the Ministry of Defense, but progress is being made.  Several issues remain unresolved: the location of the facility and the time frame of its construction are still undetermined and the new facility for reprocessing liquid radioactive waste at Atomflot has not been completed.  Dovgan reported that working groups on specific cooperation areas are being created to fulfill the agreement and to determine the time frame and costs of the project.
[Vladimir Tatur, "Budut razgrebat yadernuyu pomoyku," Vecherniy Murmansk, 8 May 1998,  p. 2.] {Entered 8/11/98 LBB}  

3/31/98: US SUPPLIES NERPA WITH DISMANTLEMENT EQUIPMENT
According to an intergovernmental agreement, the United States has supplied the Nerpa shipyard with special equipment for the dismantlement of nuclear-powered submarines at a Murmanskpromstroy facility under construction.[1]  The equipment, part of a CTR project designed to improve Nerpa's submarine dismantlement infrastructure,[2] included guillotine blades, cable choppers, cutting tools, and excavators.  However, the Russian government may not be able to fulfill its part of the agreement any time soon, according to Nerpa director Pavel Steblin, since the facility's debt has reached 22 million rubles ($3.6 million).  Employees have had to work without pay.[1]  Please see the Naval Foreign Assistance Section and the Cooperative Threat Reduction files for more information on foreign assistance programs.
Sources:
[1] Yuliya Bakayeva, "Murmansk: submarinu - pod gilotinu," Delovoy vtornik, No. 12, 31 March 1998, p. 2. {Entered 8/26/98 JET}
[2] "Infrastructure Improvement for Submarine Development at Nerpa Ship Repair Yard," Post-Soviet Nuclear & Defense Monitor, 23 February 1998, p. 12. {Entered 7/27/98 HA}
 
2/95: REPAIR YARD IS POORLY SECURED
According to Mikhail Kulik, Researcher for the Military Prosecutor's Office of the Northern Fleet, security around the Murmansk ship repair yards is gravely lax.  He reported that there are multiple breaches in the fencing, there is no surveillance around the entire perimeter, entrances can be reached with no difficulty, and the rudimentary alarm system can easily be deactivated.
[Mikhail Kulik, Yadernyy kontrol, no. 2, February 1995.]  

Last updated 29 January 2004
Comments or questions? Contact Cristina Chuen at MIIS CNS: cristina.chuen@miis.edu

This material is produced independently for NTI by the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of and has not been independently verified by NTI or its directors, officers, employees, agents. Copyright © 2002 by MIIS.

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