Floes of ice move through the sea in Qoornoq Island, near Nuuk, Greenland, on Feb. 17, 2025, in this photo unrelated to the article.AP/YONHAP
BEIJING, China — A Chinese shipping company is set to launch the world’s first regular container service across the Arctic to connect China and Europe on Saturday.
China is moving quickly to gain a foothold in the race to commercialize the China-Europe Arctic Express, an alternative shipping route between Asia and Europe that has drawn growing attention amid global warming and the war in Iran, according to the Financial Times on Monday.
Ships have traveled the Arctic route dozens of times each year, but those have been individual voyages. This launch will be the world’s first regularly scheduled container service along the route.
Shanghai-based container shipping company Sea Legend Line will send the Dubai Tower, a vessel capable of carrying the equivalent of 1,740 standard 20-foot shipping containers (TEU), from the Port of Ningbo-Zhoushan in the east coast of China on Saturday. One TEU equals the volume of a standard 20-foot-long shipping container
The vessel will sail along Russia’s northern coast and is scheduled to arrive at Port of Felixstowe in Britain on Sept. 5.
Sea Legend plans to operate one sailing a week through Oct. 3, for a total of eight trips. The eight sailings will offer a combined capacity of 15,700 TEU.
The Arctic route can cut the journey between China and Europe to about 20 days, roughly half the 30 to 40 days required via the Suez Canal. It is also faster than the China-Europe rail route, which takes about 25 days, and the 40 to 50 days required to sail around the Cape of Good Hope on the Atlantic coast of South Africa.
Houthi supporters hold placards as they attend an anti-Saudi rally amid an escalation with the kingdom, in Sanaa, Yemen, on July 31.REUTERS/YONHAP
The route also offers an alternative to geopolitical risks along existing shipping lanes, including attacks by Houthi rebels in the Red Sea, which connects to the Suez Canal.
Sea Legend has dubbed the route the “Ice Silk Road,” a reference to the ancient Silk Road that connected China and Europe.
In September 2025, Sea Legend successfully completed a trial voyage when its container ship Istanbul Bridge sailed from Ningbo port to Felixstowe port in 20 days.
China plans to use the Arctic route to expand exports of high-value goods and temperature-sensitive battery products to Europe. The route could offer an advantage for e-commerce shipments that are particularly sensitive to delivery times. It could also benefit shipments of batteries and energy storage systems, which can deteriorate in quality when transported through hot equatorial regions.
The Araon icebreaker sails through the Arctic in this photo unrelated to the article.KOREA POLAR RESEARCH INSTITUTE
The Arctic route, however, faces significant seasonal limitations.
Ships can generally navigate the route without icebreakers only from late July through late September. Sailing conditions become more difficult after October as sea ice expands.
More than 500 shipping accidents have occurred in the Arctic over the past decade, according to insurer Allianz, with nearly half involving machinery damage or malfunction.
“The long-term goal for the Arctic route is to extend the navigable season,” Li Xiaobin, chief operating officer of Sea Legend Line, told Chinese financial magazine Caixin. “Our goal is to expand the sailing season from two months this year to three months next year and four months the following year and eventually achieve year-round operations.”
Competition to establish a presence along the Arctic route is intensifying.
Crowds watch the naming ceremony of Maersk's dual-fuel methanol vessel, Albert Maersk, at APM Terminals, Navi Mumbai, India, on Feb. 28, 2025.REUTERS/YONHAP
In 2018, Danish shipping company Maersk sent the container ship Venta Maersk from Vladivostok to St. Petersburg via the Arctic route in a trial voyage. It was the first container ship to complete the Arctic route.
However, major European shipping companies later said they would not use the Arctic route due to concerns about damaging the region’s ecosystem.
Growing interest in Arctic shipping is also reflected in rising orders for ice-class vessels, which have reinforced hulls that allow them to navigate waters with sea ice.
A total of 167 ice-class vessels were built in 2025, the highest number in a decade, according to maritime data company Veson Nautical. Another 164 are expected to be built this year, the Financial Times reported.
Korea is also actively pursuing opportunities along the Arctic route. Busan-based PanStar, which was selected to conduct a trial voyage along the route, is reportedly preparing to set sail on Aug. 22.
BY SHIN KYUNG-JIN [lee.jiwon10@joongang.co.kr]
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
