Arctic Cruise Blog

Blog Link: NUNAVIK'S LOG BOOK | Fednav


The MV Nunavik, a vessel touted by its owners as one of the most powerful ice-breaking bulk carriers in the world, set out Sept. 19 on a voyage from Deception Bay, Quebec to northeastern China — through the Northwest Passage.

Owned by the Montreal-based Fednav Ltd., the MV Nunavik carries 23,000 tonnes of nickel concentrate extracted from the Chinese-owned Nunavik Nickel Mine near Deception Bay, Fednav said in a news release.

The Nunavik Nickel Mine is operated by Canadian Royalties Inc, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the China-based Jilin Jien Nickel Industry Co. Ltd.

On its 20-day voyage to the port of Bayuquan in northeast China, the vessel will sail for about 5,000 nautical miles, or 9,400 kilometres.

Fednav said that’s 40 per cent shorter than the normal Panama Canal route and that they’ll save more than 1,300 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.

The 31,700-tonne MV Nunavik will become one of the first commercial vessels to make an unescorted voyage through the Northwest Passage with an Arctic cargo.

News story link: NunatsiaqOnline 2014-09-22: NEWS: MV Nunavik: from Quebec to China via the Northwest Passage

Egad...

For them to suggest that it's good for the environment because they'll burn less fuel than going through the Panama Canal is like a cigarette company making medicine to lengthen the lives of smokers with cancer so they can smoke longer.

Welcome to your Anthropocene;
Anthropocene: Age of Man - Pictures, More From National Geographic Magazine

The best part was that the CDN. Gov't allowed the Chinese to buy the mines so they could take the resources to China in the first place.

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Trawler

And then, why not container ships able to qualify as ice transit. Short cut all the Long-shore ports on the Left Coast and save huge on same savings as described above. Global warming as you have never seen it were the Left Coast of America to lose shipping. Think of the railroad cut backs. Poor old "Whats His Name" who owns Burlington Northern or even Canadian National. The world of trade changes will be something to watch for sure!!!

Al

If you can suffer through Barbara Budd's unnatural inflections and the writer's melodramatic plot tweaks, Mighty Ships did an episode on her sistership, the Umiak, which is worth watching.