After the end of the military clash with Japan lost by Russia, the country’s leadership arrived at a conclusion that a thorough exploration should be made of the territory in the region of Eurasia northern shores. A hydrographic expedition in the Arctic Ocean was organized. To implement the planned voyage, two sister ship icebreakers were laid down in Saint Petersburg in 1907. The ships which knew no equals at that time were christened Taymyr and Vaygach. These names were given to the ships after a peninsula and an island situated on the way to Asia that passed along the country northern coast.

Steamship Vaygach of 1359 tons displacement and 60 meters long was built by workers of the Nevsky Marine Engineering Plant. A 1200 house power triple-expansion engine was used as the propelling force. The vessel maximum speed was 9 knots. At economical speed of 7 knots, the icebreaker could cover the distance of 7700 miles.