Laying of a pipeline and an electric cable line on the bottom of Lake Ladoga. 1942

During the time of the second wartime navigation very difficult works were performed in order to construct a pipeline for fuel and lubrication materials and lay an electric cable at the bottom of Lake Ladoga. In the conditions of the siege the supply of fuel and lubricants to the forces on the front line and the ships of the Baltic fleet was among the most urgent issues. The idea of pipeline construction was reviewed by the Military council of the front line and approved by the decision of the State Defense Commitee dated April 25, 1942. A group of engineers headed by D. Ya. Shinberg studied the area of the route and developed a project. Works were performed simultaneously in all districts and were held almost 24 hours per day. The welding of separate parts of the pipe and laying of the pipe did not stip even during stormy weather. The underwater works were performed by the divers of the Baltic fleet. The pipeline with the length of almost 28 km started functioning on June 18, 1942. Leningrad started receiving fuel from the mainland.

The besieged city urgently needed electricity. The exposition displays materials on the laying of the electric cable along the bottom of Lake Ladoga. This cable was used to deliver electricity from the Volkhov hydroelectric power plant to Leningrad. In order to lay five lines of the three-phase cable with the length of more than 100 km the workers of the "Sevkabel" plant committed a labor exploit in the besieged city. In the most difficult conditions they made 120 km of cable – 280 drums with the weight of approximately 11 tons each.

A significant part of the route passed close to the front line. Due to this, works had to performed at night. From the building site in the Morye bay the cable was loaded manually to the specially equipped barge, arranging it in a special order. The barge with the cable prepared for laying was pulled to the lake by a tug boat. One line took around 12 hours to be laid. It was decided to lay the fifth line at daytime. The enemy tried to sabotage the works, but the line was successfully laid. In September 1942 Leningrad started receiving electricity from the mainland.