Northern Sea Route Transit Record Likely to be Broken

After a slow start this summer mariime transport along the northern Sea Route has gained speed the last couple of weeks.

In course of the two first months of this years’ sailing period only nine vessels had used the Northern Sea Route (NSR) for transportation of cargo between Europe and Asia, as reported in 'BarentsObserver'.

During the last two weeks, things have really gained speed, and the number of vessels sailing the NSR has now reached a total of 22 – 13 from the west to the east and nine in the opposite direction.

A total of 749.706 tons of different cargo has been transported – approaching last year’s record of 820.789 tons, a press release from the operator of Russia’s fleet of nuclear-powered icebreakers Rosatomflot reads.

The sailing season will probably last another two months. In 2011 the last vessel reached the Pacific Ocean on November 18, marking the longest sailing season on the Northern Sea Route ever.