First scheduled container service between Europe and Asia will significantly reduce voyage times
首条欧亚定期集装箱航线将大幅缩短航行时间
Cargo traffic through icy northern seas has increased in recent years to save on time and costs, according to maritime industry observers © Aleksandr Medvedkov/Dreamstime
据航运业观察人士称，近年来，穿越冰冷北部海域的货运量有所增加，以节省时间和成本 © Aleksandr Medvedkov/Dreamstime
Alice Hancock in London
爱丽丝·汉考克 伦敦报道
Published 已发布 8 HOURS AGO
The Arctic is emerging as a viable alternative to the world’s traditional shipping routes as melting polar ice shortens the journey between Europe and Asia and vessels seek to avoid maritime chokepoints.
随着极地冰层融化缩短了欧亚之间的航程，且船只试图避开海上咽喉要道，北极正成为全球传统航线的可行替代方案。
Sea Legend, a Chinese container shipping company focusing on the Turkish and North African markets, will this week launch the first regular container shipping service through the Arctic.
专注于土耳其和北非市场的中国集装箱航运公司 "海传奇" 将于本周开通首条穿越北极的定期集装箱航运服务。
The weekly service will skirt the north Russian coast on its journey between Ningbo on China’s east coast and Felixstowe in the UK. The company has branded the service the “Ice Silk Road” in reference to the Silk Road trading route that once connected China and Europe.
这条每周一班的航线将沿俄罗斯北部海岸航行，往返于中国东海岸的宁波和英国的费利克斯托之间。该公司将该服务命名为 "冰上丝绸之路"，以呼应曾连接中国与欧洲的丝绸之路贸易路线。
The voyage will cut the usual 40-day sailing time between the two ports by about half, depending on the conditions in the Arctic Circle. The move follows a record 23 transits through the Northern Sea Route last summer, up from 15 voyages in 2024.
此次航行将把两港之间通常 40 天的航程缩短约一半，具体时间取决于北极圈内的冰况。此前，2024 年夏季通过北方海航道的航行次数已达 15 次，而去年夏季更创下 23 次的历史纪录。
Sea ice melts far enough south in summer to allow ships to pass without needing icebreaker capabilities.
夏季海冰消融范围足够偏南，使得船舶无需破冰能力即可通行。
Despite geopolitical rivalry over control of the region, shipping companies are becoming increasingly interested in the route as a way to avoid chokepoints such as the Bab al-Mandab Strait into the Red Sea, where the Houthis, an Iranian-backed military group, renewed threats last month.
尽管围绕该地区控制权存在地缘政治竞争，但航运公司对该航线的兴趣日益浓厚，将其视为规避咽喉要道（如进入红海的曼德海峡）的途径。上月，伊朗支持的军事组织胡塞武装重新发出威胁。
Houthi militants said on July 23 they had attacked two Saudi Arabian tankers in the Red Sea, which sent oil prices back above $100 a barrel.
胡塞武装分子于 7 月 23 日声称在红海袭击了两艘沙特阿拉伯油轮，导致油价重新突破每桶 100 美元。
“There’s been a definite increase in traffic through the Arctic and Northern Sea Route,” said Rahul Khanna, global head of marine risk consulting at the insurer Allianz. “Vessels and shipowners now see it as more of an opportunity, first to save a lot of time and cost” but also to “take out all the geopolitical chokepoints and conflict zones”, he said.
"北极航线和北方海航道的通航量确实出现了明显增长，" 安联保险全球海洋风险咨询主管拉胡尔·卡纳表示。"如今，船舶和船东更多地将其视为机遇，首先能节省大量时间和成本，“同时还能" 避开所有地缘政治瓶颈和冲突区域”。
Arctic warming is reducing sea ice, which could open up shorter shipping routes between China and Europe
© FT · Source: NSIDC · Audio: Audio Networks
北极变暖正在减少海冰，这可能会开辟中国与欧洲之间更短的航运路线©FT•来源：美国国家冰雪数据中心•音频：音频网络
The Northern Sea Route is broken up into 28 sections with different guidelines set by the Rosatom-controlled Northern Sea Route administration depending on the varying ice conditions. The Russian state-controlled company issues permits to sail through the area.
北方海航道被划分为 28 个航段，由俄罗斯国家原子能公司控制的北方海航道管理局根据不同的冰情制定相应航行准则。这家俄罗斯国有控股企业负责签发该区域的航行许可证。
Despite Maersk sending the first container ship through the Arctic route between Vladivostok and St Petersburg in 2018, the Danish shipping line and many other European companies have pledged not to use the route for fear of damaging the delicate Arctic ecosystem.
尽管马士基在 2018 年曾派遣首艘集装箱船经北极航线往返符拉迪沃斯托克与圣彼得堡，但这家丹麦航运公司及众多欧洲企业已承诺不再使用该航线，唯恐破坏脆弱的北极生态系统。
Arctic sea ice during the peak winter period was down 5.8 per cent between 2024 and 2025 – the biggest drop on record, according to a recent paper by University of Southampton researchers. Peak sea ice recovered slightly this year but was the second-lowest extent ever recorded, the paper said.
南安普顿大学研究人员近期发表的论文指出，2024 至 2025 年间北极冬季海冰峰值期冰量减少 5.8%，创下最大降幅纪录。该论文称，今年海冰峰值虽略有回升，但仍为有记录以来第二低值。
“The impact of global warming in the Arctic is quite staggering,” said former Canadian environment minister Steven Guilbeault, who is sailing across the Arctic to raise awareness of issues affecting the far north. “Climate change will enhance security risks in the Arctic, particularly if there are more and more vessels in the Arctic which are not necessarily from Arctic nations.”
"全球变暖对北极的影响令人震惊，" 前加拿大环境部长史蒂文·吉尔博表示。他正乘船穿越北极，旨在提高人们对影响这片极北之地问题的认知。“气候变化将加剧北极安全风险，尤其是当越来越多非北极国家的船只出现在这片海域时。”
Reasons European companies were staying away from the route included relations with Russia and climate change, said Malte Humpert, an expert in Arctic shipping at High North News, which is run by Norway’s Nord University.
挪威诺德大学旗下《高北新闻》的北极航运专家马尔特·胡姆佩特指出，欧洲企业回避该航线的理由包括与俄罗斯的关系以及气候变化因素。
The interest in using the Arctic region for shipping has also been shown in a rise in orders for ice-class vessels. There were 167 constructed last year, the highest level in more than a decade, while a further 164 are due to be built this year, according to maritime data company Veson Nautical.
对北极地区航运兴趣的增长也体现在冰级船舶订单的增加上。据海事数据公司 Veson Nautical 统计，去年共建造了 167 艘冰级船舶，创下十多年来的最高水平，而今年预计还将建造 164 艘。
The construction of icebreaker ships has risen in recent years
Source: Veson Nautical
However, the Arctic still presents critical challenges to seafarers who need experience navigating ice fields often without GPS, which can fail to work that far north.
然而，北极仍给海员带来严峻挑战，他们需要在缺乏 GPS（全球定位系统）的情况下穿越冰区航行——GPS 在如此高纬度地区可能失效。
“There is always the risk of oil spill or pollution and you are far from search and rescue. But you can also argue that you are reducing CO₂ emissions by going the shorter route,” Humpert said.
"漏油或污染的风险始终存在，而且你离搜救地点很远。但也可以说，走更短的路线可以减少二氧化碳排放。" 亨珀特表示。
Ships must also abide by the International Maritime Organization’s Polar Code that sets strict safety and environmental protection standards for vessels.
船舶还必须遵守国际海事组织的《极地规则》，该规则为船舶制定了严格的安全和环境保护标准。
“There is a big chance of vessels getting stuck if no icebreaker facilities are available,” said Khanna, who added that there had been a rise in enquiries about using the Northern Sea Route over the past five years. “If we have a casualty in the Arctic, we have limited salvage, assistance, firefighting or rescue. To deal with a contingency or casualty in the Arctic is much more difficult.”
"如果没有破冰船设施，船舶被困的可能性很大，" 卡纳说，他补充道，过去五年中关于使用北方海航线的咨询有所增加。“如果北极地区发生事故，我们可用的打捞、援助、消防或救援资源有限。在北极处理突发事件或事故要困难得多。”
Allianz analysis shows that there have been more than 500 reported shipping incidents in the Arctic Circle over the past 10 years, with machinery damage or failure responsible for almost half the total.
安联的分析显示，过去 10 年间，北极圈内报告了超过 500 起航运事故，其中近一半是由机械损坏或故障造成的。
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