Icebreaker “Krasin”, owned by Russian shipping line FESCO, departed her homeport of Vladivostok on July 10 and is about to set sail for the eastern Arctic region, the shipping company said.
The ship will be deployed to provide icebreaking assistance in the Nothern Sea Route to merchant vessels, carrying general cargo and containers to the ports of destination in northern Chukotka and Yakutia, under the contract with the Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transport of Russia (Rosmorrechflot).
The shipping season starts on July 25, 2014 but under the requests of shipowners the company decided to start the navigation in the Arctic five days earlier.
The Krasin will be escorting cargo ships along the Northern Sea Route from July 20 July until the beginning of November, 2014.
Overall, the shipping company plans to deploy ten cargo ships with RS class notation Arc 4 and above to assist navigation in the Arctic in the summer-autumn season 2014.
Northern Sea Route – the shortest sea passage between the European part of Russia and the Far East, is becoming ever more popular among shippers when it comes to delivering cargo through this unique Arctic route.
The rise in interest is associated with an increase in turnover between the European countries and the Asia-Pacific region, along with the development of large-scale oil and gas deposits on the Arctic shelf.
As a result, the route is of strategic importance not only for Russia but also for the economies of other countries.
[mappress] Press Release, July 14th, 2014