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Polar planning
24th Jun 2026
Ice tank testing is essential to design for a changing Arctic (image: Getty images/Canadian Coast Guard)
The Arctic is warming roughly four times faster than the global average, making shipping lanes that were theoretical a decade ago commercially viable sooner than even optimistic projections suggested.
Geopolitics is also driving increased interest in these waters. The Northern Sea Route not only offers transit times some 30 to 40% shorter between the Far East and Europe than traditional Red Sea routes, it also avoids conflict zones, piracy hotspots and strategic bottlenecks. In a volatile world, nations are taking their Arctic territories more seriously, particularly given their resource potential. The Arctic holds vast reserves of oil, gas and critical minerals, but the vessels and infrastructure to support extraction don’t yet exist at the required scale.
“The Arctic in particular feels like it’s moved almost overnight from a