On 12 April 2023, Magnus Friberg (Sunet) and Ieva Muraškienė (NORDUnet) held a follow-
up meeting with the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat in Helsingborg, Sweden.
The meeting focused on the Northern EU Gateways project WP5T2 Arctic Route study
activity, and on aligning with the Polar Research Secretariat in terms of research
engagement to gain a better understanding of the researchers’ perspectives and
requirements for scientific instruments for Arctic research.
Likewise, the aim of the meeting was to understand the requirements of the arctic class
vessels for laying the submarine cables in the Arctic Ocean, understand the necessary
technical capabilities of such ship, and the estimated timeline for building the required
polar class vessel. The participants discussed the possible solution for the polar cable
laying vessel, potential research use cases, and conditions for building reliable and
efficient data connection between Europe and the Asian Pacific across the Arctic Ocean.
To get the complete understanding of such a vessel a visit to icebreaker Oden formed
part of the agenda. The Oden is one of the world’s most powerful non-nuclear
icebreakers. Captain Mattias Peterson welcomed the project team onboard the ship and
provided valuable information on the conditions of navigating the Arctic waters and the
requirements for polar class vessels. Harry Robertsson – Senior Technical Advisor at Stena
Rederi AB – shared his expertise on the special features of the polar class vessel design.
