The Northern Sea Route could become one of the world's main shipping lanes, Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matviyenko said at a joint meeting of the Federation Council's Arctic Committee, which included members of the State Commission for Arctic Development.

"The Northern Sea Route has the potential to become one of the main global shipping lanes. Experts believe that its freight traffic volume can increase by more than 15 times by 2020," she said.

However, the Northern Sea Route's current infrastructure is obsolescent. For example, it had 50-plus ports and transshipment stations in the early 1990s, but over half of them are now in disuse.

"We have to decide what navigation legislation needs to be drafted to make the Northern Sea Route more attractive," she noted.