HMM looks north to Arctic passage

South Korea’s largest ocean carrier is considering launching a regular liner service via the Arctic Sea, a move that could cut transits between Asia and Europe considerably.    South Korea’s largest ocean carrier, Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM), is looking to launch a regular liner service via the Arctic Sea, cutting transits from Asia to Europe, according to Pulse News, a website affiliated with Maeil Business News Korea.
   HMM is considering a trial operation from as early as 2020.
   A market source said HMM is planning on deploying vessels ranging from 2,500 TEUs to 3,500 TEUs through the Arctic Sea, Pulse News reported.
   “A plan is being discussed to put a polar icebreaker before a commercial container vessel or use an ice-class vessel specially designed for ice navigation,” the source added.
   The Northern Sea Route (NSR) provides the shortest maritime path between Asia and Europe, allowing shipments from Busan to Rotterdam that take 24 days to be shortened to 14 days. The NSR is currently available for just four months out of the year due to heavy ice conditions during the winter, but this could be potentially extended due to global warming.
   Media sources in November 2015 reported that Chinese carrier COSCO was considering increasing the number of ships sailing between Asia and Europe through the NSR, and possibly even deploying a regular string on the route. Those reports followed the successful round trip voyage of the 19,000-dwt Chinese general cargo vessel Yong Sheng from China to Europe and back via the Arctic Sea.
   An HMM spokesperson confirmed to maritime news outlet Splash 24/7 today that the company was reviewing Arctic voyages as a future business opportunity, but cautioned nothing was definite yet.
   Earlier this year, Vladimir Chabrov, head of the fleet department at transportation and logistics company FESCO, told Russian news agency TASS that certain factors hinder development on the NSR.
   These factors include weak port infrastructure, lack of repairing and refueling bases, high costs of icebreaker’s exploration and a shortage of trained personnel, Chabrov said. In addition, he noted “the water pipe in Pevek (in eastern Russia) was damaged in 2014, and nowadays, vessels working in the eastern part of NSR are practically unable to restock fresh water.”
   Overall, the Center for High North Logistics reports that 19 ships transited the NSR in 2016, collectively carrying 214,513 metric tons of cargo.