The PanStar Acro left Busan New Port at around 9 p.m., according to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries. The voyage marks South Korea's first Arctic route trial by any vessel in a decade and its first involving a container ship.
The 2,758-TEU vessel, operated by Busan-based PanStar Line Dot Com, is expected to enter the Northern Sea Route around Aug. 30 and pass through Arctic waters around Sept. 7.
It will call at Felixstowe in Britain on Sept. 9, Rotterdam in the Netherlands on Sept. 11 and Gdansk in Poland on Sept. 15 before returning to Busan via the same Arctic route around Oct. 5.
The entire voyage is expected to take about 45 days, including roughly 6,400 kilometers of navigation through Arctic waters.
The PanStar Acro, purchased from South Korean shipping giant HMM, is an ice-class vessel capable of operating in polar waters. It is carrying 737 TEUs of cargo, including chemicals, used vehicles and auto parts, with the total load reaching 837 TEUs when empty containers are included.
More than 20 crew members are aboard the ship. Its captain and navigation officers have completed specialized training for polar operations, while a navigator with Arctic sailing experience aboard South Korea's icebreaker Araon is serving as chief officer.
The ministry said it will maintain a 24-hour communication system with the vessel throughout the voyage.
"The Arctic waters are still in the process of thawing and are not completely open yet, but we expect them to be fully navigable by the time we arrive," Capt. Seo Myung-won told reporters before departure.
"If that is not the case, we plan to take an alternative route," Seo said, adding that the crew will receive real-time ice charts and weather information to support navigation decisions.
Seo said the crew had also undergone intensive survival training for polar conditions, adding that the trial voyage could provide "a good opportunity for Busan to establish itself as a global maritime hub."
The government is using the voyage to assess the commercial viability and safety of the Northern Sea Route as it seeks to develop a shorter shipping corridor between South Korea and Europe and eventually establish regular Arctic services by 2030.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.
