"Arctic Ice is expected to make way for far greater shipping activities as early as 2030 to 2050. The Arctic Council to geopolitical stakeholders, including Chinese and Indian scientists are actively examining the scenario including mapping the prospect of NSR. In the event of NSR being more shipping friendly, the distance from London Port to Vladivostok Port will reduce by 40 per cent. Active NSR therefore is likely to change global shipping pattern in a major way which may directly affect IOR shipping pattern. The Russian Port of Murmansk (Western NSR Gate) and Dudinka Port already offer nearly round year shipping, eight more ports offer an average of five months of shipping. NSR Vessel traffic has indeed increased over the years. NSR stakeholders are also exhibiting climate sensitivity and correspondingly investing on Smart Port, Green Shipping and Net Zero Compatibility while further developing NSR. Chennai Port and Vladivostok Port have already signed Smart Port MoU in 2019. In the Western Coast of India, India’s forward multimodal transport concepts like INSTC has already gone through ground testing level. Now, Armenia offering additional passage opportunity to INSTC, connecting Mumbai Port to St. Petersburg Port seems more feasible.
In the larger context of Chennai-Vladivostok MoU in the east coast and Mumbai-St. Petersburg INSTC prospect in the West Coast, NSR could be a creative addition to deliver an NSR-IOR-IPR Circular Maritime Transport Corridor in the near future. In the context of this emerging transport module, and in the context Clydebank Declaration on Smart Port, Green Shipping, etc., this presentation shall examine real time prospect of an emerging NSR-IOR-IPR Circular Maritime Transport Corridor."
