Arctic Shipping Routes
                     ARCTIC SHIPPING 
ROUTES
VICTOR OLERSKIY
Member of the Board of Directors at
Russian Fishery LLC
There are currently three primary Arctic shipping routes that 
connect the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. These are known 
as the Northwest Passage, the Northeast Passage and the 
Transpolar Sea Route. Other, less travelled Arctic sea routes 
include the Northern Sea Route and the Arctic Bridge.
Viability
The viability of all Arctic sea routes 
is compromised for much of the 
year due to the presence of ice floes 
blocking all or part of the routes. 
Specialised icebreaker vessels can 
to some extent negate this issue, 
but only in certain areas at certain 
times of the year. As such, these 
routes can only be passed when 
conditions permit. The viability var-
ies between routes and depends 
greatly on the time of year.
Diminishing Ice Floes
As climate change continues to 
melt the ice floes, the Arctic ship-
ping routes are beginning to be-
come viable for longer each year. 
Predictions are that by 2060, only 
85% of the current ice mass will re-
main in winter and just 40% in the 
summer months.
Arctic shipping is subject to the 
same international regulations 
as all global merchant shipping, 
including the requirement for all 
ships with a gross tonnage of more 
than 300 to have GMDSS commu-
nication equipment. 
Victor Olerskiy
Victor Olerskiy
Victor Olerskiy
You can learn more about GMDSS by 
visiting the blog of Victor Olerskiy.