Ice Camp Barneo looks to return in 2024
Ice Camp Barneo has never been an easy destination to reach. When it is held, the Swiss-owned, Russian-run outpost is constructed on an ice floe some 100km from the North Pole and only lasts for a few weeks in April and May. But its remoteness makes it the ideal place to start or end a polar expedition, just as it became famous for being the location of the world’s northernmost marathon and a place where the well-heeled traveller could go to tick the North Pole off their bucket list.
But, the past few years, reaching Barneo has been impossible. In 2019, Barneo AG, which operates the camp, was forced to call it off due to a conflict between Russian authorities and the Ukrainian pilots hired to transport people and equipment there. In 2020 and 2021, it was Covid travel restrictions imposed by Oslo-controlled Svalbard, from where the camp is staged, that got in the way. Last year, Russia’s war against Ukraine was a factor, along with continued Covid restrictions and Norwegian bans on using the airport in Longyearbyen, Svalbard’s main settlement.
Much to the dismay of adventurers from all over the world, the camp this year again was called off after Luftfartstilsynet, Norway’s civil-aviation authority, refused to issue a permit to operate flights out of Longyearbyen.
Since the news of this year’s cancelation emerged, rumours about the camp and its future have circulated on social-media outlets. In response, Barneo AG, in a statement issued to PolarJournal (published in full below), said it expects the camp will be held again in 2024.
PolarJournal
Statement:
“Regrettably, the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority has denied Camp Barneo a permit to operate flights out of Longyearbyen (on environmental grounds).
Whilst this denial will be appealed, the time required to go through the necessary legal process and the lack of immediately available alternatives, has rendered it impossible to operate the 2023 Camp out of Norway.
Despite the above and in-light of contractual arrangements already committed to, Camp Barneo did operate this season, but only in minimal fashion, so as to host a couple of flights that flew from Khatanga in Russia.
Looking forwards, Camp Barneo management has already engaged in preliminary discussions with the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority to seek a viable compromise that would satisfy all parties concerned and enable the Camp to be fully operational in 2024.
With this in-mind, we are exploring the possibility of establishing a Norwegian company to operate the Camp in the future.
Such discussions remain in progress and we will make further announcements, as and when we see clearer from where we will operate the 2024 Camp Barneo.”
