• 133 is the record number of voyages along the Northern Sea Route in September. That is 46% more than in August and more than four times the 2022 figure, the British Financial Times notes.
• Almost half of the voyages were made by vessels flying the Russian flag. The Arctic route is also used by Chinese carriers looking for alternative ways to the European market.
• The rise in traffic is linked to risks on traditional routes, including the threat from Yemen’s Houthis in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. Authorities and operators are actively seeking routes less exposed to geopolitical shocks.
• The Northern Sea Route also cuts transit time and cost. In September, the Chinese container ship Dubai Tower reached Felixstowe in Britain from Qingdao via the Arctic in 24 days. A passage through the Suez Canal or around the Cape of Good Hope would have taken at least 40 days, the Financial Times stresses.

Kristal Rosta previously cited Alexander Galushka’s view that a new logistics architecture is taking shape in the world, in which Russia holds a strong position, and reported that the Trans-Arctic Transport Corridor (TTC), of which the Northern Sea Route is a part, is a safer alternative to traditional logistics routes. “The Trans-Arctic corridor must become year-round,” the head of the Russian state said at the Eastern Economic Forum 2025. For its part, the Kristal Rosta Foundation proposed a model for ensuring regular and safe shipping on the TTC.