Global climate change and specifically the melting of sea ice, presents opportunities for international marine transportation networks in the Arctic. Arctic sea routes enable ships to move between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans as alternatives to the Panama and Suez canals, offering considerable savings in time, fuel costs, CO2 emissions and allowing more cargo to be loaded.
The trip across the Arctic however is a challenging task that requires great experience and navigational skills against extreme climate conditions and potential hazardous environment to vessels.
Seamar Management has built a critical expertise in navigating such demanding waters and encompasses a collective Ice trading experience.
In October 2013, under Seamar's Management, the bulk carrier Nordic Orion made the first-ever successful commercial transit of the Arctic’s Northwest Passage, delivering a cargo of coal from Vancouver to Finland. The voyage marked a new phase of Arctic navigation, coming just four years after the first international commercial transit of the region’s Northern Sea Route. The Nordic Orion’s journey took around a week less than had she travelled via the Panama Canal, saving the operator both the toll fees, significant fuel costs and CO2 emissions, but it also allowed for a 25% increase of cargo load.