Image credit: gCaptain.
Chinese box carrier NewNew Shipping Line is expanding its Arctic service for 2025. At the first Russian-Chinese logistics conference “#Containers” in Moscow, the company shared its plans.
Last year, NewNew Shipping completed 13 voyages between Shanghai and Arkhangelsk, carrying over 20,000 TEU. For 2025, the company will use larger vessels on the “Arctic Express No. 1” route.
In 2023, NewNew Shipping ran a service via Russia’s Northern Sea Route between Shanghai and Arkhangelsk. Chinese operations drove a tenfold increase in container volume at the Russian port.
The season ended early in October due to sea ice in the Chukchi Sea, cutting the season short by six weeks. The company completed seven voyages between July and December, moving around 9,500 TEU.
Last summer, one of NewNew’s vessels, the NewNew Polar Bear, was suspected of damaging the Balticconnector pipeline by dragging its anchor.
In the next few years, NewNew Shipping plans to extend the navigation window into June and December. It is building five ice-capable container ships, with delivery expected soon.
NewNew Shipping also reported that its 2024 Arctic operations were profitable.
Meanwhile, a second operator, EZ Safetrans Logistics, has not yet announced its 2025 plans. Last year, Safetrans made headlines with the first-ever Panamax container vessel to enter the Arctic, coming within 750 nautical miles of the North Pole.
The early summer navigation season will begin in late June, with permit applications to Russia’s Northern Sea Route Administration starting to come in.