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The Northern Sea Route, 1999–2000

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 October 2009

Lawson W. Brigham
Lawson W. Brigham
Affiliation:
Scott Polar Research Institute, University of Cambridge, Lensfield Road, Cambridge CB2 1ER
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Abstract

At the end of the twentieth century, Russia's Northern Sea Route (NSR) has functioned primarily as a domestic marine transport system with Murmansk Shipping Company as the dominant operator and facilitator. Total cargo along the NSR in 1999 was 1.58 million tons; during 1997–99 no through transit cargo was carried on the NSR. The International NSR Programme (INSROP), backed by Japanese, Norwegian, and Russian interests, concluded in November 1999 with a key user conference in Oslo. The six-year (1993–99) INSROP effort produced a large body of new information about the NSR and Russian Arctic that decision-makers will find valuable in planning future ventures in the region. Concerns have been expressed in Russia for the ageing icebreaker fleet that has been the backbone of all NSR operations since the 1950s. Several nuclear icebreakers have been refuelled and, although detailed plans for a replacement fleet of nuclear and diesel-electric ships have been developed, financing has not been identified. As Arctic sea ice continues to decline in extent and thickness, the impacts on future NSR operations will be significant considerations for future operations.

Type
Articles
Information
Polar Record , Volume 37 , Issue 203 , October 2001 , pp. 329 - 336
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2001

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