In an effort to ensure that shipowners looking to move their operations into Russian waters know all there is to know about ship safety in ice conditions, DNV has produced a pamphlet providing information about the Ice Certificate.

The Ice Certificate, a concept which has been used for Russian merchant vessels for over 20 years, defines safe ship speeds depending on type of vessel and ice conditions along the route.

When designing a new ship, the owner decides the Ice Class for the ship depending on expected operational conditions and the vessel's purpose. Entrance into Russian waters is decided by the authorities based on the actual ice condition, the vessel's Ice Class and the information contained in the Ice Certificate. If the ship is operated under certain restrictions, the ship may continue safely in more severe conditions than specified in Ice Class requirements.

"A ship is not built to fulfil any specific 'Ice Certificate' rules but rather describes safe operation in ice for a particular vessel based on the ship's design," says Morten Mejlaender-Larsen, DNV's cold-climate co-ordinator. "Essentially, it provides a description of the ship's ability to operate in ice based on the ship's structure, lines, propulsion, age, and state of the shell plating. Graphic dependencies of safe speeds and icebreaker parameters are described in the pamphlet as well as parameters describing safe operation in convoy."

The Central Marine Research and Design Institute and Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute both prepare the Ice Certificate, while the former is responsible for its issuance. Recipients should be ships planning to visit Russian waters during the winter season, but as long as the ice conditions are within the limits of the ship's Ice Class requirements, an Ice Certificate will not be required.