Chinese liner operator New New Shipping plans to deploy six 4,800-TEU ice-class container ships on Russia’s Northern Sea Route.
Chief executive Ke Jin unveiled the programme at the ROSTKI Russia-China business forum in Kazan on 18 August.
Four ships are scheduled to enter service in October 2026 on a dedicated export route from China to St Petersburg. Two more are due to be launched in June 2027.
The additional capacity is expected to support two sailings per month and carry components for Chinese vehicle manufacturers in St Petersburg, Moscow and Russia’s Kaliningrad region.
New New Shipping is targeting 1.2m tonnes of cargo on the Arctic route during the 2027 summer navigation season. Accounts of the fleet plan differ. One schedule puts four ships into service in October 2026 and the other two into the water in June 2027. Another places the launch of all six ships in October and identifies them as Arc3-class vessels. The same number of 4,800-TEU ships had previously been assigned to the carrier’s China-St Petersburg service through the Suez Canal.
It remains unclear whether the latest announcement concerns those vessels or a separate Arctic series. New New Shipping has not published the shipyard, ownership, propulsion or contract details.
Ke also outlined potential investments in the Russian Arctic ports of Murmansk and Arkhangelsk, as well as a possible equity interest in the Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga.
The plans include berth upgrades and inland logistics parks. A New New Shipping container ship made the carrier’s first call at Murmansk overnight on 19 August after carrying vehicle components from China through the Northern Sea Route.
New New Shipping operates through the Chinese legal entity Hainan Yangpu NewNew Shipping Co Ltd, which was established by the Torgmoll logistics group in 2022. The carrier focuses on container and logistics services between Chinese and Russian ports and began Arctic voyages in 2023.