On September 24, the working schedule of the Russian Audit Chamber for the last quarter of 2004 has been approved. It is mentioned in the official statement that the results of the final audit will be examined next year. After the May session of the Audit Chamber the MSC management reacted against the decision about ”illegal usage of nuclear icebreaker fleet in private purposes”, trying this decision in court without success.

The MSC General Director Alexander Medvedev said to RBC Daily in July that it was clear that the results of the audit would be against Murmansk Shipping Company as it was an unplanned and groundless action. He was surprised that the authorities were not interested in the nuclear icebreakers in the 90s when they were unprofitable and scarcely financed by the state, but now when the icebreakers started to bring profits, the MSC is accused of mishandling state money.

Since 1993 the MCS had been trying to get rid of the nuclear icebreakers, as they were a burden for the company and badly supported by the state budget. Today the state is ready to operate its property, nuclear icebreakers, without MSC. Exactly when they became profitable and oil tankers traffic increased dramatically in the region. Murmansk Shipping Company, however, would like to keep control over the “former burden”.