The East Greenland Ice-Core project (EastGRIP) is a scientific study that required retrieving an ice core from Northeast Greenland. Over the years, the team has collaborated with Blue Water Greenland for the transportation of essential items.
As the research project has progressed, Blue Water Greenland has delivered a range of cargoes to the remote site, ranging from snow scooters through to large drilling components needed to bore 2,700 m into the ice. The logistics team in Nuuk, Greenland, has the local knowledge to handle the unique challenges of transporting cargo in the Artic region.
As last year’s field season was wrapping up in August, the University of Copenhagen, which oversees the project, needed to reroute equipment not back to Copenhagen, but to a partner in Manitoba, Canada. The equipment was crucial for a similar project.
Everything was packed on pallets for an Air Force air charter, arranged by the university, but it fell through due to timing constraints. Marie Kirk, logistics coordinator at University of Copenhagen, reached out to her usual Blue Water contact to explore an alternative solution for the transport. Together with the team in Nuuk they decided on an ocean freight solution; although it was slower than airfreight, the more cost-effective solution would still meet the EastGRIP schedule.
Logistics in Greenland is challenging and Blue Water explained that it is important to be as flexible as possible to find a solution that fits the conditions. “We always look at all options and with our experience and knowledge of local conditions, such as when the ice calves, we can give the best advice to ensure a smooth transport with no surprises along the way,” said Gabriella Sonnichsen of the North Atlantic team.
With the shipping season nearing its end around autumn, and with only a few departures remaining before the ice closed routes, Blue Water Nuuk successfully secured two 20 ft containers on the final call from Kangerlussuaq to Canada via Nuuk/Iceland. Adjustments to cargo certificates were handled by Blue Water to ensure compliance for the shipment.
With all equipment safely loaded in Kangerlussuaq, the university reached out to Blue Water with a last-minute request to get additional goods in the container in Nuuk. Even though there were initial doubts regarding feasibility, the Blue Water Nuuk warehouse team managed to fit everything in the containers.The equipment arrived safely and on time in Canada, marking a successful end to another field season for EastGRIP in Northeast Greenland.
