The Northern Sea Route is expected to become a major trade route for goods shipped between Europe and Asia. It stretches the entire length of Russia’s Arctic and Far East regions.
Ships under the Russian flag could get the exclusive right to transport oil and gas along the Northern Sea Route, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin who proposed the measure to boost the country’s shipbuilding industry.
The corresponding bill is currently being considered in the State Duma. to be adopted soon.
It will increase the volume of shipping, strengthen the position of the domestic shipping companies. The Christophe de Margerie is the first LNG tanker and icebreaker in the world.
The Russian tanker has completed its first commercial voyage, delivering liquefied natural gas (LNG) through the Northern Sea Route from Norway to South Korea.
The entire voyage from Hammerfest in Norway to Boryeong in South Korea via the Russian Northern Sea Route took 19 days, which is about 30% shorter than the traditional southern route through the Suez Canal.
The route runs the length of Russia’s Arctic and was completed in a record six and a half days. The tanker had an average speed of more than 14 knots (about 28 km/ph) despite the fact that the vessel was forced to go through ice fields 1.2 meters thick.
The amount of cargo transported via the Northern Sea Route exceeded the Soviet record last year, at 7.5 million tons. By 2030 the volume is expected to skyrocket to 70 million tons.
Ships will mainly transport liquefied natural gas (LNG),oil, and coal. The Arctic route from Southeast Asia to Europe cuts the transportation time in half compared to traditional routes through the Suez and Panama canals.
In Soviet times, it was used mainly to supply goods to isolated settlements in the Arctic.
RT.com / ABC Flash Point Shipping News 2018.
