According to Russian media reports, the bulk carrier Gingo has become the first capesize ship to sail the Northern Sea Route.
In particular, on on 6th September, 2023, the nuclear icebreaker “Taimyr” and the universal nuclear icebreaker “Sibir” of the Federal State Unitary Enterprise “Atomflot”, in the waters of the Northern Sea Route (NSR) completed the pilotage of the bulk carrier Gingo, with a cargo of 164.5 thousand tons of iron ore concentrate.
For the first time, the enterprise’s icebreakers carried out an operation to navigate a vessel with a deadweight of more than 164,500 tonnes from west to east, on a 13-day voyage.
Remember
The Northern Sea Route is a shipping lane officially defined by Russian legislation between the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean specifically running along the Russian Arctic coast from Murmansk on the Barents Sea, along Siberia, to the Bering Strait and Far East. The entire route lies in Arctic waters and within Russia’s exclusive economic zone. Parts are free of ice for only two months per year.
The NSR has grown to be a significant transport route for the export of metals, oil, LNG, mineral fertilisers, and other goods, with freight traffic increasing from 4 million tonnes in 2014 to 34 million tonnes in 2022, according to Russia’s Minister for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic.
Russia is looking to increase the capacity of the NSR to up to to 100 million tonnes by 2026 and 200 million tonnes by 2030.
To remind, OCIMF has released a paper which outlines the challenges and best practices that operators must consider when passing through NSR. For the safe navigation through the Arctic waters, OCIMF highlights that the type of vessel, operational procedures and personal preparation must be planned in advance.
Even in this day and age, a fully-laden crude oil tanker is probably the last type of ship that should be sent through the #NorthernSeaRoute without any ice-strengthening. https://t.co/izCQasd8rC
— Aker Arctic (@AkerArctic) September 12, 2023
