Lake Onega Reservoir has an area of and volume of , i.e. almost the same as those of Onega Lake. Its construction raised the water level of the lake by . The lake contains a well-developed navigation system which is part of the Volga–Baltic Waterway and White Sea – Baltic Canal, connecting the basins of Baltic, Caspian and the northern seas. These canals allow water transport of goods from the lake to the countries from Germany to Iran; most traffic goes to Finland, Sweden, Germany and Denmark. The Onega Canal running along the southern shore of the lake there is not used
Arkhangelsk never reached it as the German forces failed to capture either of the two cities and also failed to capture Moscow. Arkhangelsk was also the site of Arkhangelsk ITL, or the Arkhangelsk Labour Camp, in the 1930s and 1940s. Today, Arkhangelsk remains a major seaport, now open year-round due to improvements in icebreakers. The city is primarily a center for the timber and fishing industries. On March 16, 2004, fifty-eight people were killed in an explosion at an apartment block in the city. Arkhangelsk is the administrative center of the oblast and, within the framework of administrative divisions, it also