The Ice Silk Road and Global Energy Security: Implications and Challenges

With the melting of ice and snow in the Arctic region caused by global warming, it not only highlights the advantages of shipping lane resources in the Arctic region, but also brings opportunities for the exploration and development of rich hydrocarbon resources in the Arctic region. This will have a profound impact on the global energy supply and demand pattern and transportation structure. According to the data provided by the U.S. National Geological Survey, the Arctic region is rich in hydrocarbon reserves, with 90 billion barrels of oil reserves and 1669 billion cubic meters of natural gas reserves. Hydrocarbon reserves account for 22% of the world's total. According to the estimation of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of Russia, there are about 100 billion tons of hydrocarbon reserves stored under the continental shelf of the Arctic Ocean in Russia. Although the oil and natural gas exploitation technology in the polar regions is relatively backward, as the Arctic ice sheet is melting at a rate of about 0.9% per year, the exploration and exploitation of resources in the Arctic region will no longer be difficult in the future, and it is likely to become the next resource base after the Middle East. The “Ice Silk Road” cooperation is an important part of the “Belt and Road” initiative, and plays an important role in expanding China's blue development space. The proposal of the “Ice Silk Road” will strengthen the energy cooperation between countries around the Arctic and other countries in the world, and promote the development of hydrocarbon resources in the region. However, it also faces many challenges in technology, environment, climate, geopolitics, and law.