At the time, the merchant marine relied largely on ageing steam-powered icebreakers, many of which had been built during the Imperial Russia era and would reach the end of their operational life in the coming years.

15, today known as Central Design Bureau "Iceberg" and part of the state-owned United Shipbuilding Corporation, which based the hull lines on the Swedish-built steam-powered icebreaker Eisbär which Germany had handed over to the Soviet Union as war reparations in 1946.

One of the sources of disagreement was the bow propeller which was considered essential for icebreaking operations in the Baltic Sea and other non-Arctic waters but susceptible to damage in heavier Arctic ice conditions.

Fully laden, the vessels drew between 5.35 and 6.3 metres (17.6 and 20.7 ft) of water corresponding to a full load displacement ranging from 2,935 to 3,350 tonnes (2,889 to 3,297 long tons).

The hull form, derived from an older Swedish-built icebreaker, featured a round midship with pronounced tumblehome and practically no flat bottom or sides.

While the curved hull lines resulted in low resistance and high maneuverability in ice, the vessels were very uncomfortable in open water due to excessive rolling.

[1] As of 2024[update], two Project 97A icebreakers remain in service with Rosmorport's North-Western Basin Branch in the Baltic Sea: Ivan Kruzenstern and Semyon Dezhnev.

Built with increased autonomy time and operating range, they were intended to patrol the western and eastern ends of the Northern Sea Route.

[53] Project 97P (Russian: 97П) was developed as a response to the renewed interest of the Soviet Navy and Soviet Border Troops on icebreaking patrol ships after United States Coast Guard and Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers began appearing more frequently near the country's northern maritime borders.

[57][58][59] Project 97N (Russian: 97Н), the final variant developed based on the Project 97 icebreaker design, was a research vessel commissioned by the State Committee for Hydrometeorology and Environmental Control of the Soviet Union to conduct scientific research in the poorly-studied transition zone between open water and the polar ice pack.