On 31 May 2020 at 06:00 Moscow time Christophe de Margerie, an icebreaking LNG service provider had and also run by SCF Group, efficiently finished her flow throughout the Northern Sea Route (NSR), bound for China with a freight of LNG for the Yamal LNG job.
For the very first time, a large-capacity vessel of this kind has actually gone across the NSR eastbound in May, when ice problems in the eastern industry of the NSR stay tough. Traditionally, the navigating in this industry begins just in July.
The flow from the Port of Sabetta to Cape Dezhnev took the vessel 12 days to finish, throughout which the LNGC covered 2,563 maritime miles at a rate considered risk-free offered the navigational problems.
Image Credits: scf-group. ru
While on the NSR, Christophe de Margerie was accompanied by Atomflot’s nuclear-powered icebreakerYamal The LNGC has actually transited one of the most tough components of the path with Yamal’s assistance, consisting of fast-ice areas in the Vilkitsky Strait, in addition to hummocky ice floes in the East Siberian and also the Chukchi seas.
Sergey Frank, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sovcomflot, commented:
“Over many years, SCF has been steadily undertaking increasingly challenging transportation projects in the Arctic seas, in partnership with Atomflot, Russian energy companies, and R&D institutions. The Company has accumulated unique experience of safely operating large-capacity vessels of high ice class, purpose designed for the harsh environments of the NSR. Thorough preparation has allowed us to make the next step and safely carry out this unique voyage, fully in line with SCF’s core principle ‘Safety Comes First.’ On behalf of the Board of Directors and all SCF Group personnel I congratulate Sergey Gen, the Master of the LNG carrier, and all her crew, and thank them for their excellent performance. I express our appreciation to Alexander Lembrik, the Master of the icebreaker Yamal, and all the icebreaker crew for their escort.”
Igor Tonkovidov, President and also Chief Executive Officer of Sovcomflot, commented:
“This successful voyage across the NSR, in May, allows us to move one step closer to realising the full transit potential of the Northern Sea Route, marking an important expansion in the shipping opportunities available to Arctic industrial projects in particular. Even in the challenging ice conditions encountered during this time of the year, choosing the NSR allows for a significant reduction in the length of a voyage delivering LNG to APAC ports compared with using the Suez Canal. A shorter voyage both allows to optimise logistics and reduce the carbon footprint of the shipping. What’s more, the vessel that began this new era in Arctic shipping both carries LNG, the cleanest fuel currently available, and uses LNG fuel herself, which drastically reduces the vessel’s impact on the environment. The success of this challenging voyage was possible thanks to the high level of training and professionalism of the vessel’s crew and SCF personnel ashore, as well as to an exhaustive and nuanced risk analysis and close collaboration with all the other parties involved in the voyage, such as NOVATEK and Atomflot.”
Image Credits: scf-group. ru
Sergey Gen, Master of Christophe de Margerie, commented:
“The ice conditions encountered during the voyage matched our forecast: on some segments, the movement was heavily obstructed, but the crew was well prepared to handle it. The voyage has proven Christophe de Margerie’s excellent icebreaking, manoeuvring, and structural capabilities, both when following an icebreaker or sailing independently in various modes. I also want to give credit to the crews of both Christophe de Margerie and Yamal for the high level of coordination between the two vessels during the NSR passage.”
The trip has actually given comprehensive details concerning the ice problems along the eastern component of the NSR, whilst enabling the control in between the LNG service provider and also accompanying icebreaker to be refined under severe problems. This will certainly verify important for preparing transport options for future commercial jobs in the Arctic, and also can assist quicken the future development of NSR freight web traffic. This details will certainly likewise be mirrored in the layout of future generations of Arctic vessels.
Reference: scf-group. ru
