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Houthi Threat Drives Arctic Shipping Route as China Launches 'Ice Silk Road'
A Chinese shipping line begins weekly Arctic service, cutting transit time by half and bypassing the Red Sea after Houthi attacks renewed threats to oil tankers.
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Houthi militants renewed threats against Red Sea shipping last month, sending oil prices above $100 a barrel. Now a Chinese container line is launching a regular Arctic service that bypasses the chokepoint entirely.
Sea Legend, a company focused on Turkish and North African markets, will begin weekly sailings between Ningbo on China's east coast and Felixstowe in the United Kingdom. The company calls the route the "Ice Silk Road." The voyage cuts the usual 40-day journey by about half, depending on conditions in the Arctic Circle.
The Arctic route skirts Russia's northern coast. Melting polar ice has made it passable in summer without icebreaker support. Last summer saw a record 23 transits through the Northern Sea Route, up from 15 in 2024.
Rahul Khanna, global head of marine risk consulting at Allianz, said vessel owners see the route as an opportunity to save time and cost and to avoid geopolitical chokepoints and conflict zones.