Ankara: The first container ship on the China-Europe Arctic container express route, the Istanbul Bridge, has successfully arrived at the Port of Gdansk in northern Poland after a 26-day journey.

According to Anadolu Agency, the vessel departed from the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port in Zhejiang Province, east China, on September 23, carrying approximately 4,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of cargo. Before docking in Poland, the Istanbul Bridge made stops at ports in the United Kingdom and Germany. Its next destination is the Netherlands.

The China-Europe Arctic Express Route navigates through the Arctic's Northeast Passage, offering a significantly shorter travel time compared to conventional routes, which take about 40 days via the Suez Canal and 50 days via the Cape of Good Hope. The Istanbul Bridge reached its first European port, Felixstowe in the UK, in just 20 days, a timeframe that matches or surpasses the speed of the China-Europe freight train, which requires around 25 days.

Li Xiaobin, the chief operating officer of Sea Legend Line Limited, the route operator, highlighted the favorable sea and temperature conditions along the Arctic route for shipping goods sensitive to temperature and time. "The low temperatures help preserve certain high-tech components," Li stated.

Sea Legend Line has plans to establish regular summer voyages on this route by 2026 and aims to extend its express service network to Eastern Europe during the winter months when the Arctic route is not navigable.