Electric Car – Pole to Pole

Shipping technology to the ends of the Earth

Few people in history have tried the ambitious expedition from the North Pole to the South Pole, but nobody has ever attempted the journey by car, let alone an EV. At Hemisphere, we’re known for our love of cars and expertise in shipping vehicles across continents by land, sea and air, so we were honoured to be tasked with helping the Pole To Pole team transport the vehicle that would drive from one end of the Earth to the other.

In advance of Chris and Julie setting off from the Magnetic North Pole in March 2023, they needed to get their Nissan Ariya e-4ORCE – modified and equipped for extreme conditions by Arctic Trucks – from port in Reykjavik, Iceland, to Halifax in Nova Scotia, Canada. This journey of 2,355 nautical miles would mean nearly 10 days at sea for the all-new vehicle, during which time its safety would be paramount.

Even the most robust vehicles need careful handling

Our role throughout this project was all about coordination and communication. Our team kept in close contact with the shipping line, the truck modification company, the ports and of course Chris and Julie at every stage.

Even though the car was shipped as ‘hazardous’, paperwork went perfectly according to plan. We worked closely with the carrier to prepare the Dangerous Goods Note (DGN), shipping documentation, insurance and container loading.

The company that handled some of the Arctic refitting preparation work on the vehicle delivered it into the shipping line’s depot, and they dealt with it from there. Shipping line staff handled the loading of the vehicle onto the flatrack container, where it was securely strapped down before being loaded onto the vessel. The journey to Nova Scotia began.

On arrival at Halifax, the car was put under a customs hold for a soil inspection, which was dealt with very quickly, thanks to swift communications from all parties. Following this, Chris visited the local customs office with documents in hand including the notice of arrival, vehicle registration and his ID – to get the Nissan customs cleared.

Once this was done, we ran up against a final challenge: at the last minute the warehouse we planned to use for offloading the Nissan from the flatrack was unable to assist us as a result of unforeseen circumstances. However, to keep to schedule, Chris needed to get on the road the day it cleared customs – in order to resolve this, we approached the port themselves. After explaining the situation, they were keen to assist. Meaning we were able to make a plan for safe unloading with them directly and on the same day.

On time and in prime condition for this groundbreaking expedition

The Nissan Ariya arrived safely and to schedule, to the delight of intrepid electric vehicle adventurer Chris Ramsey. As he says in his own words:

“Woo hoo, I have been reunited with my Pole to Pole EV expedition Ariya in Halifax, Nova Scotia. The team cannot thank Hemisphere Freight Services enough for handling the whole process from start to finish, making sure the car arrived safely. Thank you to the team at HFS, Michael Stanton and Dan Leach, for supporting the logistics during this crucial part of the journey. HFS kept the team up to date every step of the way. Communications from them were brilliant. Great team, good bunch of people and highly recommend them.”

We’re very proud to be a sponsor of Chris and Julie’s Pole To Pole expedition – the first to be undertaken by car – and are so pleased that they both completed their journey successfully. We wish them the best in their continued mission to promote cleaner electric alternatives to combustion engines.