Norilsk-Nickel combine operates the mines- and metallurgical nickel and cobber plants on the Kola Peninsula and in Norilsk in Siberia. The combine operates their own fleet of five ice-classed top modern cargo vessels.
Norilsk-Nickel’s first ever cargo to sail all the way to the markets in China via the Northern Sea Route is the vessel “Monchegorsk.” First crossing the Barents- and Kara Sea this week, the vessel will stop in Dudinka to load metal from Norilsk before it sails towards the Bering Strait and further south to Shanghai.
It is expected that “Monchegorsk” will spend 19-20 days sailing from Dudinka to Shanghai. In comparison the route from Dudinka to Shanghai on the traditional route via transshipments port in Europe and the Suez Cannel normally take 60-65 days.
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The cargo vessels operated by Norilsk-Nickel holds the best ice-classification with double hull and the highest security requirements.
The diesel-electrical cargo vessels like “Monchegorsk” can sail in ice without assistance from ice-breakers.
General Director of Norilsk-Nickel Vladimir Strzhalkovsky says in a press-statement that the combines shipment via the Northern Sea Route with own vessels is not only important in order to improve the transport and logistics of the combine itself, but it will also encourage Russia’s integration into the Euro-Asian transport system.
On its way back from Shanghai to Dudinka “Monchegorsk” will carry manufacturing material and consumer goods for the residents of Norilsk on the Taimyr Peninsula in Siberia.
