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Arctic Sea News

24 Oct 2023

Russia Strikes Deal with DP World to Develop Arctic Sea Route

© Viesturs / Adobe Stock

Russian nuclear agency Rosatom said on Tuesday it has set up a joint venture with Dubai's DP World to develop container shipping through the Arctic as part of an initiative heavily promoted by President Vladimir Putin.The deal with one of the world's top port operators is the most tangible sign yet of Moscow's ability to attract big international partners to help it realise its ambitious plans for what it calls the Northern Sea Route.Putin has talked up prospects for the Arctic corridor…

25 Sep 2023

Arctic and Antarctic Sea Ice Reach Minimum Extent for 2023

Images courtesy of National Snow and Ice Data Center

Arctic sea ice likely reached its minimum extent for the year at 4.23 million square kilometers (1.63 million square miles) on September 19, 2023, according to scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) at the University of Colorado Boulder.The 2023 minimum is ranked sixth lowest in the nearly 45-year satellite record. The last 17 annual minimum extents are the lowest 17 in the satellite record.NSIDC scientists stress that the Arctic sea ice extent number is preliminary…

06 Jun 2023

Arctic Ocean Could Be Ice-free In Summer By 2030s, Scientists Say

© Danita Delimont / Adobe Stock

The Arctic Ocean could be ice-free in summer by the 2030s, even if we do a good job of reducing emissions between now and then. That’s the worrying conclusion of a new study in Nature Communications.Predictions of an ice-free Arctic Ocean have a long and complicated history, and the 2030s is sooner than most scientists had thought possible (though it is later than some had wrongly forecast). What we know for sure is the disappearance of sea ice at the top of the world would not only be an emblematic sign of climate breakdown…

19 Sep 2022

Russia Conducts Military Drills in the Arctic Sea

(Photo: Russian Defense Ministry)

Russian nuclear-powered submarines fired cruise missiles in the Arctic on Friday as part of military drills designed to test Moscow's readiness for a possible conflict in its icy northern waters, the defense ministry said.The drills, named Umka-2022, took place in the Chukchi Sea, an eastern stretch of the Arctic Ocean that separates Russia from the U.S. state of Alaska.Russia sees its vast Arctic territory as a vital strategic interest and has been building up its military capabilities in the region for years…

26 Jan 2022

The Arctic: Scientists Aim to Improve Sea Ice Predictions' Accuracy, Access

Residents of Utqiagvik return by snowmachine from the lead at the edge of the shore-fast ice. Photo by Andy Mahoney, UAF Geophysical Institute

Sea ice predictions have improved markedly since the founding of an international forecasting and monitoring network 14 years ago.“These forecasts are quite encouraging in their increasing accuracy,” said Uma Bhatt, an atmospheric sciences professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute. Bhatt spoke about the Sea Ice Prediction Network at the American Geophysical Union’s annual meeting last month.As the amount of sea ice in the Arctic declines, thins and becomes more mobile…

23 Dec 2021

UAF’s GINA Provides a Guiding Hand in Arctic Ocean Research

The Sikuliaq, a 261-ft. ice-capable research vessel operated by UAF, pauses in the Arctic Ocean in June 2021 during its fifth year of operation. Photo by Ethan Roth

The research vessel Sikuliaq navigated among and around the chunks and slabs of Arctic sea ice above Alaska for several weeks on two voyages this fall, breaking through frozen slabs when it had to, just as its sturdy hull is designed to do. It's now on a third trip.The Sikuliaq, a 261-ft. ice-capable research vessel operated by UAF, pauses in the Arctic Ocean in June 2021 during its fifth year of operation. A few months later, it traveled farther north than ever before — almost 500 miles beyond Point Barrow.Satellite imagery produced at the Geographic Information Network of Alaska…

23 Sep 2021

Arctic Shipping Requires New Ways to Manage Risks

© Silver/AdobeStock

In February 2021, LNG carrier Christophe de Margerie, escorted by a nuclear icebreaker, became the first large-capacity cargo vessel to transit the eastern sector of the Northern Sea Route (NSR). The voyage demonstrated that year-round safe navigation is possible along the entire length of the Northern Sea Route (NSR).In the last five years, cargo traffic along the NSR has grown almost fivefold, reaching 33 million tons in 2020. Last year, there were 64 voyages on the NSR compared with 37 in 2019.

24 Jul 2021

Russia to Build LNG-powered Icebreakers for Arctic Sea Route

© Ludmila / Adobe Stock

Russia plans to build its first batch of icebreakers that are powered by liquified natural gas, a top official said on Friday, returning to an idea that was put on hold.Russia has the world's only fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers. It is building up that fleet, hoping to develop the Northern Sea Route across its northern flank into an international shipping lane as climate change melts the ice."We are now returning to this topic (building LNG-powered icebreakers). I think that by the end of the year we will decide on the possible construction of two to four medium-sized icebreakers…

01 Apr 2021

MSC Reaffirms Commitment to Avoid Arctic Shipping Routes

© Alexey Seafarer / Adobe Stock

Container shipping giant MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company doubled down on its position to avoid sending its vessels through the Northern Sea Route and urged others to follow suit, citing environmental concerns.“As a responsible company, this was an obvious decision for us,” said MSC CEO, Soren Toft. “MSC will not seek to cut through the melting ice of the Arctic to find a new route for commercial shipping, and I consider this a position the whole shipping industry must adopt.”Running from Murmansk near Russia’s border with Norway to the Bering Strait near Alaska…

17 Sep 2020

Arctic Sea Ice Lows Mark a New Polar Climate Regime

© Kertu / Adobe Stock

At the edge of the ice blanketing part of the Arctic Ocean, the ice looked sickly. Where thick sheets of ice once sat atop the water, now a layer of soft, spongey slush slid and bobbed atop the waves.From the deck of a research ship under a bright, clear sky, “ice pilot” Paul Ruzycki mused over how quickly the region was changing since he began helping ships spot and navigate between icebergs in 1996.“Not so long ago, I heard that we had 100 years before the Arctic would be ice free in the summer,” he said. “Then I heard 75 years, 25 years, and just recently I heard 15 years.

02 Sep 2020

Winter Sea Ice in Bering Sea Reached Lowest Levels in Millennia

© Andrei Stepanov / Adobe Stock

The Bering Sea ice cover during the winters of 2018 and 2019 hit new lows not seen in thousands of years, scientists reported on Wednesday, adding to concerns about the accelerating impact of climate change in the Arctic.Satellite data provides a clear picture of how sea ice has changed over the last four decades in the region between the Arctic and northern Pacific oceans. Beyond that, the only ice records available were those recorded in ship logs and other observations.So scientists turned to peat land, which holds organic compounds from plants dating back millennia, on the remote St.

28 Oct 2019

Nike Takes Arctic Shipping Pledge

Nike and Ocean Conservancy are encouraging businesses to avoid shipping routes via the Arctic Ocean, with the launch of an ‘Arctic Shipping Corporate Pledge.'As climate change causes Arctic sea ice to diminish, cargo traffic through previously unnavigable ocean routes becomes increasingly feasible. Though these routes can offer decreased transit times, the possibility of increased vessel traffic across the Arctic poses great risk and potentially devastating environmental impacts for one of the world’s most fragile regions.“At Nike, we exist to serve athletes. That means taking climate action through Move to Zero, Nike’s journey towards a zero carbon, zero waste future,” says Hilary Krane, EVP, Chief Administrative Officer and General Counsel, Nike, Inc.

21 Oct 2019

CAA Welcomes MSC 's Shelving Arctic Routes

Clean Arctic Alliance has welcome MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company's decision to avoid Arctic shipping route as a new short cut between northern Europe and Asia.Clean Arctic Alliance lead advisor Dr Sian Prior was responding to the announcement that shipping company MSC “will not explore or use the Northern Sea Route between Europe and Asia for container shipping” and that it believes that shipping lines should focus on reducing the environmental impact of existing shipping trade routes”.“The Clean Arctic Alliance welcomes MSC’s decision to avoid using the Northern Sea Route to ship goods between Asia and Europe. While MSC have understandably come under fire for their environmental record elsewhere…

07 Oct 2019

Sovcomflot Names New Arctic Shuttle Tanker

Mikhail Lazarev (Photo: Sovcomflot)

On October 6, 2019, a naming and flag raising ceremony was held in Vladivostok for Sovcomflot’s latest Arctic shuttle tanker. The vessel was named after Mikhail Lazarev, a prominent Russian admiral and explorer known for his discovery of Antarctica. The tanker was ordered by Sovcomflot to transport crude oil for the Novy Port project, under a long-term agreement between Sovcomflot and Gazprom Neft.The ceremony was attended by Oleg Melnikov, Vice-Governor of Primorsky Region and Sergey Frank…

26 Sep 2019

IPCC SROCC Reports Call for HFO Ban

The Clean Arctic Alliance and the Inuit Circumpolar Council Canada call for urgent action to ban heavy fuel oil (HFO) use and carriage by Arctic shipping to reduce risks of a devastating spill, and to reduce black carbon emissions in the Arctic, responding to Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate (SROCC).SROCC’s Summary for Policymakers states that “Arctic ship-based transportation and tourism have implications for global trade, northern nations, and economies linked to traditional shipping corridors; they will also exacerbate local risks to marine ecosystems…

03 Sep 2019

Residential Yacht Receives MIKO Polar Kits

Illustration demonstrates the Polar Kit application technique for a Miko Plaster. Image: MIKO

Preparations for the largest privately-owned residential yacht, The World, to sail the Northwest Passage across Canada from Nuuk, Greenland to Nome, Alaska this summer have included the purchase of a Miko Plasters Polar Kit as defence against the risk of being holed by ice.A team from Oslo-based Miko Marine AS flew to Reykjavik, Iceland in early August where they demonstrated the techniques developed for applying a magnetic patch to seal any hole caused by accidental contact with hard ice as might occur in open water or drift ice.

29 Aug 2019

Revenues Soar at Russia’s PAO Sovcomflot

Sergey Frank, President and CEO, PAO Sovcomflot. Photo: Sovcomflot.

PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group), which serves the energy shipping and offshore services to the oil and gas industries, reported in the first half of 2019 revenues rose 16.6% ($828m vs. $710.1m), TCE revenue rose 19.1% ($609m vs. $511.3m) and EBITDA rose 42.4% ($381.2m vs. $267.7m) as compared to the first half of 2018.Highlights from the first half included:• Korolev Prospect, Vernadsky Prospect and Samuel Prospect LNG-fuelled 114,000 DWT Aframax tankers added to the fleet.•In March 2019, the Group celebrated the 10th anniversary of the start of LNG shipments from the Sakhalin-2 project.

16 Aug 2019

July: Earth's Hottest Month Ever Recorded

© Alexander/Adobe Stock

According to the latest monthly climate report from the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), July 2019 was hottest month on record for the planet and Polar sea ice melted to record lows.Much of the planet sweltered in unprecedented heat in July, as temperatures soared to new heights in the hottest month ever recorded. The record warmth also shrank Arctic and Antarctic sea ice to historic lows.The average global temperature in July was 1.71 degrees F above the 20th-century average of 60.4 degrees…

11 Jul 2019

SCF Celebrates the Day of Russian Sea

Russian maritime shipping company specializing in petroleum and LNG shipping, PAO Sovcomflot (SCF Group) held a traditional meeting of the company’s management with masters of Sovcomflot vessels on the eve of Russia’s Day of Marine and River Fleet Workers, celebrated on the first Sunday of July.The state-owned corporation said in a press note that in the lead-up to this day, Russian Ministry of Transport has awarded 43 masters and 48 chief engineers of Sovcomflot vessels its Badge for Accident-Free Work in Maritime Transportation.During the meeting, Sergey Frank, President & CEO of Sovcomflot, expressed his gratitude to the company’s senior fleet officers for their operational excellence and significant contribution to ensuring safe and reliable sea transportation of cargo for the company'

05 Jul 2019

Arctic Sea Route Opens for Year's First LNG Cargo

AdobeStcok / © Cascoly2

A liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker carrying a cargo from the Yamal LNG plant has spent this week making its way through Arctic waters north of Russia towards Asia, marking the first voyage of the 2019 summer season across the Northern Sea Route.The Vladimir Rusanov, an Arc7-classed LNG tanker that can plough through semi-cleared waters, left the Sabetta port on June 29 and is in the Chukchi Sea close to the Bering Strait, Refinitiv Eikon shipping data showed on Friday.The route…

11 Jun 2019

Gazprom, Sovcomflot Pact on LNG Bunkering

Russian shipping company Sovcomflot and compatriot oil producer Gazprom Neft Marine Bunker have signed an agreement to cooperate on projects for bunkering ships with LNG fuel.The agreement was signed by Igor Tonkovidov, Executive Vice President and CTO/COO of Sovcomflot, and Andrey Vasiliev, CEO of Gazprom Neft Marine Bunker.Sovcomflot said that the agreement reinforces the mutual interest of both parties regarding their cooperation in the bunkering of Sovcomflot’s tankers with LNG fuel.Compared to conventional marine fuels, the use of LNG fuel allows to significantly reduce emissions of sulphur oxides, nitrogen oxides, carbon dioxide…

09 Jun 2019

DP World Eyes Arctic Sea Route

Dubai-based ports operator DP World hopes to run ports that Russia plans to build along an Arctic sea route intended to shorten shipping times between east and west.The quadrilateral agreement of intent with Russian Direct Investment Fund, an investment fund of the Russian Federation, Rosatom, the infrastructure operator of the NSR and Norilsk Nickel, a world leader in the production of palladium and high-quality nickel, was signed, reported Reuters.The signed deal between the Emirati company and the Russian firms is not legally binding, according to Reuters.“This is going to change the [economic] growth for Russia,” DP World Chief Executive Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem  said in an interview with Reuters in St. Petersburg.

28 May 2019

Russia Launches Nuclear-Powered Icebreaker

Russia's nuclear energy agency, Rosatom launched the nuclear-powered ice breaker Ural at the Baltic Shipyard in St. Petersburg."With the ceremonial launch of Ural, Russia’s nuclear energy giant, Rosatom, has completed another step towards ensuring all-year round navigability of the Northern Sea Route (NSR)," said a press release.The 173 metre-long ‘Ural’ is equipped with two highly efficient and compact RITM-200 nuclear reactors on board, capable of generating up to 350MW combined, allowing the ship to break through ice as thick as 3 meters.The cutting edge RITM-200 type reactor makes its world debut on the ‘Ural’ as well as on its sister vessels from the 22220 project…

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