"It is important to not only use the existing fleet of icebreakers, but also to build new ships, and the first nuclear icebreaker of a new generation will be built by 2015," Sergei Kiriyenko said.

The agreement aims at uniting efforts to implement programs to use nuclear power, nuclear icebreakers, and ensure nuclear, radiation and environmental security in the Murmansk Region.

Kiriyenko said the Iceberg Design Bureau in St. Petersburg would prepare the design of the icebreaker by 2009. "This should be an icebreaker capable of moving in rivers and seas," he said.

Responsibility for Russia's nuclear icebreaker fleet will be handed over to Rosatom from the Murmansk Shipping Company on August 27.

The Russian nuclear chief also said Russia would allocate 800 million rubles ($33.9 million) to the maintenance of nuclear icebreakers in 2008.

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