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Tag: NSR

Northern Sea Route almost passable

As reported by The Northern Sea Route Administration, this year´s sailing season through the Arctic shortcut will probably be busiest in the history. The first vessels are to hit the route in the end of this month.

The Northern Sea Route Administration has so far received 89 applications to use the Northern Sea Route (NSR). 54 vessels have so far been given permission to sail along the route, the administration’s web site reads. All the vessels will not sail the whole route between Europe and Russia, some of them will only be working on the western part of the route from Dudinka to Murmansk.

The total cargo transported on the NSR last year was 1 261 545 tons – a 53 percent increase from 2011, when 820 789 tons was shipped on the route. According to conservative estimates the amount will grow to 1, 5 million tons in 2013.

The Northern Sea Route is a shipping lane officially defined by Russian legislation from the Atlantic Ocean to 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 parts are free of ice for only two months per year. Before the beginning of the 20^th century it was called the Northeast Passage, and is still sometimes referred to by that name.

Source: Barents Observer

June 6, 2013
Moscow chosen over NSR-cities

Russia has decided to host the administration for the Northern Sea Route in its capital, Moscow. The new headquarters will open late January this year.

The Deputy Transport Minister of Russia, Viktor Olersky, said to RIA Novosti that a draft of the resolution has been made and it is being coordinated by federal agencies. The BarentsObserver states that both Murmansk and Arkhangelsk lost the fight for hosting the administration, after looking for having it in its respective cities for years.

The reason given for choosing Moscow, instead of either of the two harbor cities in the route is “in order not to offend anyone”. Olersky also said that a branch could be opened later in Arkhangelsk.

He said that although concerns may rise that Moscow is not at the sea route that it was a good location as the Emergency Situations Ministry was in Moscow, as well as other big companies and organizations who work and employ in the areas.

The state owned enterprise will have a budget of 35 million Rubles. Only for days prior to the decision by Olersky, the Governor of Arkhangelsk Igor Orlov said that Arkhangelsk was ready to open a NSR office that would handle all practical tasks connected to traffic on the route – applications to use the route, coordination with the Agency on Hydrometeorology and Environmental Monitoring, use of Arctic aviation and so on.

In 2012 total cargo transported through the Northern Sea Route was 1.261.545 tons, an increase of over 50 percent from 2011. The total number of ships also increased from 34 in 2011 to 46 in 2012, compared to only 4 in 2010.

Sources

RIA Novosti

Barents Observer

January 3, 2013
Nine vessels have sailed through NSR this summer

With the continuous melt of Arctic sea ice, the Region might become all free of summer ice within a next decade.

Previous year which was marked as the longest sailing season for the Northern Sea Route, managed to handle 34 vessels. The total cargo transported, reached 820.000 tones.

So far the year of 2012 managed to handle only 9 vessels on the Northern Sea Route. However, if the sailing season extends, this year might become new record for the new transportation path between Asia, Northern part of Europe and North America.

Nuclear powered ice breakers have been escorting vessels in transit in convoys this summer as the ice level was extremely law. This situation was different from the one which occurred in 2011, when nuclear powered ice breakers had to follow one ship at the time in order to bring it through thick Arctic ice.

The first two vessels to sail through Northern Sea Route this summer were Russian ´Indiga´ and ´Varzuga´ which transported diesel fuel.

´Nordic Odyssey´ and ´Nordic Orion´ sailed from Murmansk in northern Russian to ports in China with close to 70.000 tons of iron ore concentrate.

The gas tankers ´Marilee´ and ´Palva´ both owned by Murmansk Shipping Company, each transported close to 60.000 tons of gas condensate to South Korea.

Also ´Vengeri´, the tugboat and the Chinese non – nuclear ice breaker ´Xuelong´ were escorted along the Northern Sea Route this summer while sailing to the northern hemisphere.

The scientists report that the situation on the Northern Sea Route meets the average standards. The path from Kara Gate to New Siberian Islands seems to be totally ice free, however the part of the way in East Siberian Sea, seems to be more difficult than recorded last year.

Currently the trip via Northern Sea Route takes 9 – 11 days on average speed of 12 knots.

Source

Barents Observer

August 29, 2012
Murmansk to open Arctic emergency center on NSR

The Russian government announced that the emergency and rescue centers are to be open along the Northern Sea Route.

Russian hopes for the future of NSR bring the country´s investments of more than 20 million Euros into the area. Projects for ten rescue centers, located on Chukotka, Andyr, in Murmansk, Arkhangelsk, Naryan-Mar, Vorkuta, Nadym, Dudinka and Tiksi have already been prepared and construction is planned to be finished before 2015. The first rescue center is to be located in the port of Dudinka and it will start operating from August 2012.

The center in strategic hub for NSR – Murmansk will be ready before the end of 2013 as confirmed by the Russia’s Deputy Minister of Regional Development Aleksander Viktorov at the “Security and Cooperation in the Arctic: New Frontiers” conference recently held in Murmansk.

The map presents all current and future shipping routes available in the Arctic for both cargo and passenger operations. Please, be referred to our Interactive Mapping System to access more information about the Arctic shipping routes and sea ports located in Russia.

Source: Barents Observer

April 17, 2012
A 750% increased shipping traffic in NSR

The Northern Sea Route was busier then ever this year. In total, 34 vessels used the route, a significant increase from only 4 in 2010.

The route was open for one month longer than last year, but this still shows that the route is becoming more feasible and more popular.

The number is for ships that sailed from Murmansk to another country, Russians being the leading shipping operators in the NRS.

The cargo in 2010 was 111.000 tons but in 2011 it went to 820.000.

15 of the 34 vessels transported liquid cargo (682.000 tons), three carried bulk (110.000 tons), four refrigerator ships transported salmon (27.500), two vessels transported general cargo and ten vessels sailed in ballast, according to the Barents Observer.

This year also saw the largest super tanker and the largest bulk carrier to go through the route.

The map illustrates a new route, which opened up in the summer.

Sources: Rosatomflot, RIA Novosti and BarentsObserver.

December 1, 2011