"Moskovsky Komsomolets": "PUTIN VISITS ST PETERSBURG TO WATCH SHIP TESTS"
The Prime Minister was shown unique ship-testing basins
Vladimir Putin made a flew to visit his native St Petersburg yesterday to watch the testing of new types of ships ranging from submarines to oil drilling platforms. At the Alexei Krylov Central Research Institute, Mr Putin was shown demonstrations that the shipbuilding industry was still afloat in spite of the crisis and that our testing basins would even be used by the French.
"Not all countries can afford such basins," the scientists boasted. The round circulation basin, the first to be shown to the Prime Minister, is indeed something special. It is the second largest in the world (70 m in diameter) after one in America. "The Dutch and the French have similar facilities," the designers explained, "but the French are shutting theirs down because land is very expensive and they have decided to save on it. They will do their tests here."
Although the basin and the equipment have been in operation since 1968 and only the instruments and computers are new, the members of the staff say they do not need new equipment given that the Soviet-era facility has a huge margin of strength.
Mr Putin watched a model of a railway ferry being tugged across the basin. The scientists were testing the steering system and the engines. This kind of platform will be in commercial operation in several years' time. The test ride watched by the Prime Minister took several minutes. Mr Putin spotted some fish in the water and was told they had been put there to clean the basin. The Institute's Director also demonstrated a drilling rig being tested for Gazprom destined for the Shtokman field. To an outsider the test looks very simple: the model is rocked violently. "It withstands very rough seas," the Director boasted. "Our platform is stable," Mr Putin observed, drawing a subtle analogy with the state of the country.
"All the tests of the Kursk (the submarine that sank tragically - MK) were carried out here," the Director recalled.
"I know," the Prime Minister replied sadly. Mr Putin was shown other types of basins: a marine one was shown live and a rocking one was projected onto a screen. Mr Putin showed a keen interest in everything, but at the time this piece was being prepared, it was unknown what conclusions he had drawn.
Tatyana Zamakhina
