On September 22, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited Arkhangelsk, the city hosting The Arctic: Territory of Dialogue international conference. In his video teleconference with the Prirazlomnaya oil platform, Putin reminded people who dominates the Arctic. It is expected that the region can produce up to 6.5 million tonnes of oil annually while Gazprom plans to extract the gas equivalent of up to 11 billion tonnes [annually] from the shelf area by 2030. The premier promised that oil and gas projects would not affect the Arctic's fragile environment.
"We must make sure that the region is preserved in its natural state for future generations," he said, but added, "...as much as it is possible for man to preserve anything in its original state given that our planet is a living organism and is constantly changing."
Putin ordered a massive clean-up in the Arctic to get rid of the barrels and other toxic waste left by Soviet explorers. The first portion, namely 2.3 billion roubles, was allotted for the clean-up of the Franz Josef Land archipelago, with the villages on Spitsbergen and Wrangel Island waiting their turn.
The prime minister had a chance to see into the future of the Arctic. Along with the offshore platforms, new developments will include cities for scientists. One such project was displayed at the exhibition. Umka, an Arctic village, can house up to 5,000 residents and will be completely isolated from the outside world by a huge dome with a controlled temperature.
"Researchers could live there permanently rather than for short expeditions only," the developers say. "It is modeled after an imaginary Moon city or a completely isolated space station."
A domed city will be built on one of the New Siberian Islands in the Arctic Ocean. While the developers are working on that design, another effort is the exploration of the Northern Sea Route. It will substantially shorten the time required for shipping between Europe and Asia. Between some city pairs, shipping time could be cut by more than ten days.
Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov told Izvestiya that the Vyacheslav Tikhonov, a new exploration vessel handed over to Rosneft last Friday, had already done a test trip along the Northern Sea Route.
"It completed the journey in seven days. It was accompanied by an icebreaker, but there were no ice blocks along the way," Ivanov told Izvestiya.
Marine navigation requires less time in the summer, the deputy prime minister explained. But it seems that nature favours the new Russian waterway. Due to global warming, the navigation season is becoming longer every year. Nevertheless, every ship taking the Northern Sea Route will be accompanied by an icebreaker, which should bring extra revenue to the country, according to Ivanov.
Speaking at the conference, Putin assured attendees that the companies and countries that will be operating along the Northern Sea Route, will gain a considerable financial advantage due to the shorter distance.
"This route is a third shorter than traditional routes, which is an excellent opportunity to minimise transportation expenses," the premier said.
Alexei Golenishchev Izvestiya
Anastasia Novikova