Chinese shipping firm Sea Legend launches first regular Arctic container route, halving Ningbo-Felixstowe transit to 20 days

Launch of the Ice Silk Road

Chinese shipping company Sea Legend will launch the first regular weekly container service through the Arctic on August 12, 2026, connecting Ningbo on China's eastern coast with Felixstowe in the United Kingdom along Russia's northern seaboard. The service, branded "Ice Silk Road," is scheduled to run eight departures between August 12 and October 27, with seven vessels carrying between 1,500 and 5,000 containers each. The first vessel, "Dubai Tower," has capacity for 1,740 standard containers. The route follows a successful trial last year by the vessel "Istanbul Bridge," which covered the Ningbo-Felixstowe distance in 20 days, a time the operator described as record-setting.

The traditional route between the two ports takes roughly 40 days via the Strait of Malacca, the Indian Ocean, the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. The Arctic passage cuts that to approximately 20 days, depending on ice conditions. The route bypasses several chokepoints that have become increasingly hazardous, including the Strait of Hormuz, affected by the conflict in Iran that began on February 28, and Bab al-Mandeb, where Houthi rebels backed by Tehran have attacked shipping. In late July, the militia claimed attacks on two Saudi tankers, the "Encelia" and the "Layla," with a security source reporting a rocket strike on the "Encelia" and Saudi news agency SPA confirming a fire at the bow. Oil prices subsequently rose above $100 per barrel for the first time since May.

A route controlled by Moscow

The Northern Sea Route runs almost entirely through Russian territorial waters and is divided into 28 segments administered by Rosatom, the Russian state nuclear energy corporation, which issues permits and provides icebreaker services. Rosatom CEO Alexei Likhachev confirmed the eight sailings through October. Peter Sand of the shipping data platform Xeneta noted that Russian authorities must grant permission for transit and that vessels may require escort by Russian icebreakers, adding that for the foreseeable future the route will primarily serve Russian energy exports.

The project has deep strategic roots. Xi Jinping launched the "Ice Silk Road" initiative with Moscow in 2017, and China incorporated it into its official Arctic policy published in January 2018, designating itself a "near-Arctic state" despite having no territory within the Arctic Circle. The route also appears in China's 14th Five-Year Plan covering 2021-2025 and the Vision 2035 strategy.

Growing traffic, growing concerns

Transit through the Northern Sea Route reached a record 23 passages in summer 2025, up from 15 in 2024. Tonnage in transit along the route reached 38 million tonnes in 2025, more than double the 18 million recorded in 2018. Icebreaker orders have surged, with 167 vessels delivered last year, the highest figure in over a decade, and 164 additional orders placed this year. A University of Southampton study found that winter sea ice extent dropped 5.8% between 2024 and 2025, the largest decline ever measured.

Despite the momentum, the route faces significant opposition. MSC, the world's largest shipping company with over 1,000 vessels, controlled by Italian magnate Gianluigi Aponte, has ruled out using the Northern Sea Route. MSC CEO Soren Toft stated that safe navigation cannot be guaranteed.

It is not possible to guarantee safe navigation.

Rahul Khanna, head of marine risk advisory at insurer Allianz, told the Financial Times that traffic on the northern route has increased noticeably as shipping companies seek to save time and costs while avoiding geopolitical chokepoints. The German Foreign Office has expressed concern about the increased presence of Russia and China in the Arctic. Environmental risks also persist: nearly half of more than 500 maritime incidents recorded in the Arctic over the last decade were caused by equipment failure, and ships face challenges including navigating by sight in areas where GPS signal is unavailable and the risk of becoming trapped in ice.