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Panstar Acro, a container vessel participating in the government-led pilot voyage along the Arctic sea route, departs from Busan New Port at around 9:25 p.m. on the 22nd of last month. / Provided by Panstar Group

President Lee Jae-myung shared footage of the Panstar Acro—the nation's first container ship to embark on a pilot voyage along the Arctic sea route—wishing for its safe return.

On the 5th, President Lee wrote on X (formerly Twitter), "Together with the Korean people, I pray for the safe voyage and return of the Panstar Acro, the pioneer vessel charting the Arctic route that will open up Busan as a southern maritime capital."

President Lee also released sailing footage recorded aboard the Panstar Acro earlier that morning around 10:00 a.m. near Bolshevik Island, Russia.

President Lee explained, "This is footage taken from the Panstar Acro, the Republic of Korea's first Arctic route exploration vessel, as it sailed through Arctic waters 81 kilometers southwest of Bolshevik Island, Russia, at 10:00 a.m. today. It is scheduled to exit Russian-controlled Arctic waters on the 10th and arrive at its first port of call, Felixstowe in the UK, on the 12th."

To conduct South Korea's first container ship pilot voyage along the Arctic sea route, the Panstar Acro departed from Busan New Port on the 22nd of last month. A 2,758-TEU vessel (one TEU equals one 20-foot container), its Arctic sailing distance covers approximately 6,400 kilometers.

The Panstar Acro will navigate the Northeast Passage, making consecutive port calls in Felixstowe, UK; Rotterdam, Netherlands; and Gdansk, Poland, before returning to Busan.

The vessel is laden with actual commercial export cargo, including chemical products, used cars, and auto parts. Through this voyage, the government aims to evaluate technical and environmental sailing conditions, assess commercial viability, and gauge demand among shippers and logistics providers.

Earlier, Panstar Group Chairman Kim Hyun-kyum stated, "Because this is the Republic of Korea's first container ship pilot voyage, our top priority is a safe round trip. Once this voyage is completed successfully, we will leverage the operational experience and acquired data to lay the foundation for establishing regular Asia-Europe Arctic shipping services."

                                                                                                             Kim So-young