Wärtsilä Opens Service Centre in Murmansk
Wärtsilä has opened a Service Centre in Murmansk, Russia to serve the rapidly growing number of vessels in northern waters. To emphasize the importance of co-operation, Wärtsilä’s CEO and President, Ole Johansson and the Governor of the Murmansk Oblast region of Russia, Dmitry Vladimirovich Dmitrienko, jointly signed a document of goodwill.
The Service Centre demonstrates Wärtsilä’s commitment to expand in line with the increasing marine activity in the Barents Sea region. The Murmansk Service Centre covers an area of 280 m2 and includes both workshops and offices. The Service Centre offers overhauling of main and auxiliary marine engines, as well as maintenance and repairs of ancillary equipment, pipework, electrical equipment, ship automation systems, and other equipment.
The service workshop is being staffed initially with 15 employees, but this number is expected to increase in the near future. The majority of employees are being hired locally. They will be trained both at the Wärtsilä Land & Sea Academy in Finland, and on site according to Wärtsilä’s global standards. The service capacity will enable Wärtsilä to offer more efficient and fully focused support to the growing fleet of merchant vessels, offshore vessels, offshore platforms, and offshore facilities in the region.
Being the only year-round ice-free port in north western Russia, Murmansk is rapidly being developed as a major transport hub. It is also the operational centre for the development of the vast Shtokman gas condensates field. The port is home to more than twenty maritime companies, and is attracting an increasing number of international companies to the region.
“Local presence and availability are of utmost importance in assuring efficient customer support. The new Service Centre in Murmansk is a further step in our strategy to continuously develop our unique worldwide service network,” says Christoph Vitzthum, Group Vice President, Wärtsilä Services.