The Northern Sea Route may switch to year-round operation in early 2027.

The Northern Sea Route (NSR) may start operating year-round in early 2027 due to the launch of regular shipments of Russian cargo to Asia. This was announced on October 27 by Vladimir Panov, Director for the Development of the Northern Sea Route and the Arctic, Head of the Arctic Directorate of Rosatom.

"The NSR is one step away from regular transportation in the eastern direction, that is, one step away from year—round availability," he told Interfax.

According to Panov, in recent years Russia has come much closer to organizing permanent navigation in the Arctic. Preparations for regular flights to the east are now being completed, and domestic companies have already formed the necessary cargo base.

In particular, Novatek provides transportation of significant volumes of liquefied natural gas, and the Vostok Oil project of Rosneft is gradually increasing supplies. Six flights have already been completed since the last one.

The Arctic fleet is also developing at the same time. The construction of specialized vessels capable of operating in difficult ice conditions continues at the Zvezda shipyard. The first two Arctic-class gas carriers have already been handed over to the customer for operation on the Northern Sea Route.

At the same time, Panov noted that the transition to year-round navigation will require further improvement of logistics. The main task will be to increase the speed of ship caravans in the winter and spring period, since the technical possibility of their wiring already exists.

In addition, it is necessary to expand the network of rescue centers, develop communications and medical infrastructure along the route.

According to the representative of Rosatom, the Ministry of Emergency Situations has already organized the work of Arctic rescue centers in Pevek and Sabetta. Similar facilities are being built in Dikson and Tiksi.

To ensure the safety of navigation, the Ministry of Transport has also formed a group of 14 rescue vessels. Another 10 are under construction. In the future, this infrastructure is planned to be expanded as cargo traffic increases.

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Glenn Diesen, a political scientist and professor at the University of Southeastern Norway, suggested on September 28 that the United States is concerned about the development of the NSR, since the promising transport route is under the control of Russia. The expert also noted that Washington has traditionally sought to control sea routes.

Anton Kobyakov, adviser to the Russian president, said on August 30 that US President Donald Trump's "Greenland" plan was related to an attempt to strengthen Washington's influence in the Arctic. Kobyakov noted that such a configuration could allow the United States to create an alternative NSR route from the Pacific Ocean to the North Atlantic and compete with the Russian Arctic transport route.