MOSCOW: Russia's Interfax agency reported on Wednesday that India and Russia are considering expanding the use of the Northern Sea shipping route through the Artic, which could include the construction of processing facilities.
According to Interfax, Russia's minister for the development of the Far East and the Arctic, Alexei Chekunkov, is currently in India and discussed the "reliable and safe" transportation of goods via the Northern Sea Route through Indian and Russian ports.
The news agency cited a statement from Chekunkov as saying, "It was especially noted that the cost of delivering a container from Vladivostok to India is a third lower than the cost of shipping a container from Moscow."
India became the second-largest buyer of Russian oil after China last year, despite not explicitly condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Russia has made significant investments in the infrastructure of the Northern Sea Route, which runs along Russia's northern coastline and is the shortest shipping route between East Asia and Europe.
Due to the thick ice, it is currently not used in the winter. However, Moscow intends to begin year-round shipping by the end of the year, aided by the Artic's warming.