NEWYORK, Sep. 17 -- OAO GMK Norilsk Nickel, Russia’s largest mining company, sent its first metals shipment to Southeast Asia via the Arctic.

The trip to South Korea and Shanghai, China, will take 19 to 20 days from Dudinka in northern Siberia, rather than 60 to 65 days through the Suez Canal, Norilsk said today in a statement. The first ship left the Russian port of Murmansk yesterday, the company said.