China View: Beijing Expands Arctic Exploration To Improve Energy and Economic Security

DuKai photographer

In March of 2025, China's research station Qinling in Antarctica launched a large-scale clean energy system capable of generating power for about 2.5 hours. Qinling is the country’s fifth research station in the Arctic. In recent decades, the country has taken an active role in intensifying research in the Arctic and Antarctic by maintaining an active polar research program.

China opened its first Arctic scientific research station Huang He Zhan (Yellow River Station) in 2004. Research operations have continued to intensify in the Arctic region as rapidly melting ice and the impacts of climate change have escalated in the last few decades. As a result of this environmental change, natural resources and new sea routes in the region have become more accessible.

China is an important stakeholder in Arctic affairs and is considered a "Near-Arctic State", one of the continental states that are closest to the Arctic Circle. In addition to research, the government has other interests in the region. It is estimated that the Arctic contains 90 billion barrels of undiscovered oil and 1,670 trillion cubic feet (47 trillion cubic meters) of undiscovered natural gas.

In addition to energy resources, the region is also projected to hold significant reserves of rare earth metals and minerals. Arctic sea lanes also have potential implications for trade and economic development. While the melting of ice in the Arctic allows for more opportunities, it also poses significant security concerns. Is this continued expansion into the region worth the risk?

“Polar regions, together with the oceans, the internet and space exploration, have become new but strategic areas where China is seeking to develop in the future,”

-Wang Chuanxing, polar researcher at Tongji University

After the death of Chairman Mao Zedong in 1976, the government began investing in polar exploration and established agencies related to Arctic exploration and research including the Chinese Arctic and Antarctic Administration (CAA) in 1981. The CAA organizes and supervises Arctic and Antarctic expeditions. The agency is also responsible for formulating regulations concerning polar activities, establishing major polar scientific research projects, and participating in international organizations involved in polar research.

The country’s first polar expedition in Antarctica took place in 1984. Shortly following this mission, the Polar Research Institute of China (PRIC) was founded in 1989. The PRIC provides logistics for Chinese National Arctic and Antarctic Research Expeditions (CHINARE). They are also responsible for managing polar research vessels and research stations such as the Zhongshan Station.

In 1990, Chinese scientists visited the North Pole for the first time and in 1995, a group of Chinese scientists and journalists travelled to the North Pole to conduct the country’s first research expedition in the region. Since 1999, China has organized a number of scientific expeditions in the Arctic, with its research vessel Xue Long (Snow Dragon) used as the base of operations. In 2004, China built its first Arctic research station, the Arctic Yellow River Station (Huanghe zhan). Since 2006, the government has continued to increase its investment in polar research to help develop new infrastructure and improve older assets.

During this time, the government also began to increase its participation in global Arctic conferences and has participated as an observer at Arctic Council, an intergovernmental forum promoting cooperation in the Arctic. In 2011, the government invested $300 million to improve the Xue Long icebreaker, which not only provides a platform for polar research, but helps navigate through frozen bodies of water and removes ice. This expanded the number of facilities that research teams could use to study the marine environment as well as collect and monitor meteorological data. As a result of this investment, the Xue Long became the first Chinese-flagged vessel to transit the Arctic Ocean in 2012.  

Since 2014, the government has been overseeing military and maritime policy to improve the country’s knowledge and capacity to navigate the Arctic. The 2015 National Security Law highlights the government’s interest in expanding “geostrategy and military security, asset and personnel security, climate and environment security and resource- and energy security” in the Arctic region. To improve security, Chinese military forces have been deployed to protect its interests in the Arctic, including securing shipping lanes and construction projects connected to the “Polar Silk Road”, an extension of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) that focuses on development around the Arctic region.

The Thirteenth Five Year Plan in 2016 expanded on the country’s Arctic strategy by committing greater government resources to polar exploration and expeditions. This included funding the development of new icebreaker vessels as well as increasing contributions to international research and energy exploration efforts. Chapter 41 of the Plan aims to “expand the space of the blue economy” and calls for the “strengthening the exploration and development of marine resources and expanding scientific expeditions to marine polar regions”. In March of 2021, the Fourteenth Five Year Plan was also adopted and highlights the government’s intent to enhance the country’s activity in the Arctic. “We will enhance our ability to participate in Antarctic conservation and utilization”.

In December of 2024, the Tan Suo San Hao (Explorer 3) research vessel was launched on Thursday to conduct deep-sea operations in polar areas. This ship also allows the country to send researchers to the deep polar sea beds for scientific exploration. These research excursions have the potential to support the country’s commercial and military activities in the Arctic.

China is one of the world’s largest consumers and producers of rare earth metals, which play a vital role in manufacturing of new technologies, including communications, electronics, green technology, and national defense. The country is also one of the world’s largest consumers of energy. The government has expressed concerns about the country’s resource security and economic sustainability.

In recent decades, the country has increasingly become more reliant on foreign energy and raw materials for its continued economic growth. The Arctic has the potential to help alleviate some of these domestic concerns. The estimated reserves of hydrocarbons and rare metals, such as gadolinium and neodymium, in the Arctic has been a key driver of China’s interest in the region. Hydrocarbons, which are often used in fuels, plastics, and pharmaceuticals, are an existential resource and accounted for almost a third of all energy produced in the country in 2020.

The continued melting of the Arctic also creates more accessible shipping lanes that can decrease shipping distance and delivery times. These routes can also provide alternative paths if disruptions occur such as blockades or piracy. However, the navigational conditions in the Arctic will remain treacherous and access to refueling stations remains sparse in the region.