South Korea will carry out a test voyage on the Northeast Passage in the Arctic in September. A container ship with 3,000 TEU will sail from Busan to Rotterdam.
Acting Minister of Oceans and Fisheries Kim Sung-beom announced the test run on January 8. The plan follows the establishment of a department to promote the Northern Sea Route (NSR) at the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries last December.
Officials from the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Home Affairs and Security, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs have been seconded to the department. The department acts as an interdepartmental coordinating body for the development of the route. China is already transporting goods through the Arctic, and South Korea is determined to catch up. “We also plan to support the construction of polar ships, including icebreakers and ice-class vessels,” said Minister Kim. “We will develop technologies for building ice-resistant container ships, examine various incentives and train seafarers for polar navigation.”
Possible cooperation with Russia
The minister explained that there are a number of legal hurdles to overcome due to Western sanctions against Russia. There are concerns that the escorting of South Korean ships by Russian icebreakers could constitute a violation of the sanctions.
“Russia needs permission to transit its waters,” Kim explained. “Depending on the situation, escort by Russian icebreakers may be necessary, so cooperation is essential. As a party to the Western sanctions against Russia, we cannot ignore this issue. We are looking for a way to reconcile both sides.”
This is South Korea’s second attempt to sail the Northeast Passage after Hyundai Glovis sent five tankers chartered by Stena Bulk in 2015.
It could also prove difficult to find a South Korean liner shipping company to participate in the pilot project. The state-owned shipping company HMM signaled last year that it was not very interested in the Northeast Passage. The reason given was that the deployment of large ships, which are currently the most important units in the Asia-Europe trade, was not possible.
Of the South Korean shipping companies, Sinokor Merchant Marine and Dong Young Shipping continue to sail to Russia. “As soon as we receive a commitment from a shipping company, we will check the economic feasibility,” Kim concluded.
