During the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum 2023, the Far East Development Corporation (FEDC), the Arkhangelsk Marine Engineering Cluster Association and the Government of the Arkhangelsk Region entered into a cooperation agreement to establish a new full-service high-tech ship repair facility in the region to repair and maintain the fleet operating in the Western Arctic and on the North Sea Route.

According to the document, the parties will make joint efforts to attract an investor to the project with a total capital investment of up to RUB 50 bn and the creation of up to 3,000 jobs. During the establishment of the ship repair facility, large-scale hydrotechnical works will be carried out to increase the ship's navigability and draft at the site of the new facilities, two docks with cargo capacity and a wharf line will be built, and a complex of workshops will be created to provide a full cycle of ship repair, maintenance and modernisation.

The new ship repair facility will be able to service a target segment of more than 200 vessels—sea-going and intermodal—or 40% of the total Arctic fleet, which experts estimate will be 800 vessels by 2030 in connection with the implementation of major investment projects and plans to increase cargo traffic along the North Sea Route to 220 mn tons by 2035.