Graphic compares the Northern Sea Route through the Arctic Ocean with the normally taken southern route via the Suez Canal.
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MARITIME

Maersk to send first container ship through Arctic Ocean

By Ninian Carter

August 23, 2018 - A Danish vessel is attempting to become the first container ship to tackle the Arctic sea route north of Russia.

Denmark’s Maersk, the world’s largest operator of container shipping, plans to send the first such ship from East Asia to Europe via the Arctic Ocean. The ship will collect data to see if melting Arctic sea ice has made the route economically viable.

The recently launched Venta Maersk set sail from the Russian port of Vladivostok on August 23, from where it travels north through the Bering Strait and then west along Russia’s northern coast, heading for St Petersburg via what is known as the Northern Sea Route.

The company said the Venta Maersk, which carries approximately 3,600 containers, is designed to withstand waters as cold as -25°C. It will transport a cargo of goods including frozen fish on the trial voyage, after which it will be deployed in the Baltic Sea.

Sources
PUBLISHED: 23/08/2018; STORY: Graphic News; PICTURES: Google, MarineTraffic
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