A fault was also noticed in the cargo ship’s anchor long before the ship arrived in the Baltic Sea.
The cargo ship that caused the damage to the Balticconnector gas pipe had problems at the very beginning of the journey in China, according to an investigation by Svenska .
The Balticconnector gas pipeline between Finland and Estonia and several communication cables were damaged in October 2023, when the anchor of the Chinese container ship Newnew Polar Bear hit the pipeline and cables at the bottom of the Gulf of Finland.
According to schedule information obtained by Svenska , Newnew Polar Bear left Shanghai, China, almost a week late than the original schedule, and arrived at its destination in St. Petersburg, Russia, more than a month late.
According to the original schedule, the ship was supposed to leave Shanghai on August 9 and travel through the Arctic Ocean to the Baltic Sea. However, the trip was only able to start on August 15. The ship was supposed to arrive in St. Petersburg on September 6, but finally arrived on October 8.
Problems with the anchor even before the Baltic Sea
The damage to the Balticconnector and the cables was caused by the damaged anchor of the Newnew Polar Bear, which dragged on the seabed for hundreds of kilometers. According to information from Svenska , there were problems with the anchor already at the beginning of the trip.
On the first day of September, the ship left Sakhalin Island, which is located north of Japan and belongs to Russia, but had to return there.
On September 5, Newnew Polar Bear’s shipping company announced that the ship’s voyage would be delayed as the ship’s anchor required repairs. The ship continued its journey five days later on September 10.
A sea captain who trains sea captains at the Aboa Mare educational institution in Turku Magnus Winberg assessed to Svenska that such large cargo ship delays are unusual. According to Winberg, the routes of cargo ships are scheduled very strictly.
According to Winberg, the movements of the Newnew Polar Bear indicate that the ship has been experiencing technical problems. Winberg estimates that the problems could be due to difficult weather conditions or mistakes made by the crew.