As early as Saturday, a Mitsui OSK Lines and China Cosco Shipping-owned LNG carrier will pull into the Siberian port of Sabetta. Last weekend, the Atomflot-operated Russian ice-breaker newbuilding Arktika smashed its way to the North Pole itself.

Both sailings demonstrate a rapidly-melting Arctic region.

The 174,000-cbm newbuilding LNG Phecda is on its way from Shanghai to Russia’s Yamal LNG gas-producing project via the Northern Sea Route without ice-breaker assistance.