It is the fifth ship in the series of nine RSD59 ships ordered by STLC

Nizhny Novgorod, Russia based Krasnoye Sormovo shipyard (a company of the United Shipbuilding Corporation) has launched the Leonid Pestrikov, dry cargo carrier of Project RSD59, today, 12 February 2021. It is the fifth ship in the series of nine RSD59 dry cargo carriers ordered by State Transport Leasing Company (STLC) and intended for Alfa LLC, STLC says in a press release.

Krasnoye Sormovo shipyard launches dry cargo carrier Leonid Pestrikov intended for Alfa

Following the launching the ship will undergo outfitting. Upon completion sea trials scheduled for spring 2021, the ship will be leased out to Alfa LLC.

In December 2019, Krasnoye Sormovo and STLC signed new contracts on construction of nine dry cargo carriers under the option for signing contracts on construction and delivery of 20 ships of RSD59 design. The previous three series of RSD59 design number 20 ships with Krasnoye Sormovo being the leader among domestic shipyards building dry cargo carriers of this project.  The remaining ships of the series will be launched in 2021.

The forth ship in the series of nine RSD59 dry cargo carriers intended for Alfa LLC, Viktor Andryukhin, was launched on 20 January 2021.

Krasnoye Sormovo PJSC is one of the oldest shipbuilding companies in Russia, founded in 1849. Throughout the 75-year period, more than three hundred submarines and rescue vehicles including 25 nuclear ones have been built and modernized by Krasnoye Sormovo shipyard. Today, Krasnoye Sormovo builds vessels of commercial fleet meeting the requirements of international conventions on reliability and safety. Some of Krasnoye Sormovo tankers are in the list of Significant Ships of the Year by the Royal Institution of Naval Architects (RINA).

The State Transport Leasing Company (GTLK) is Russia’s largest player in the lease market. It leases out aircraft, vessels, rail transport, road vehicles and special equipment to domestic transport enterprises and invests in the development of Russia's transport infrastructure. The company's sole shareholder is the Russian Federation represented by the Ministry of Transport. GTLK holds double-B ratings from Fitch Ratings и Moody’s agencies and an A+(RU) national rating from ACRA. As of 30 September 2020, leasing portfolio of GTLK totals RUB 982 billion.

STLC holds leadership in the segment of water transport leasing in Russia with the market share as high as 71% (in 9M’2020 according to Expert RA). The company’s activities support domestic shipbuilding and modernization of Russian ships as well as the development of passenger transportation by inland water ways. As of 1 January 2021, the fleet of STLC numbers 167 ships of various types with investments in the industry having totaled RUB 245 billion.