The Arctic region, including the Russian Arctic and the Northern Sea Route (NSR), is currently characterized by an increased interest of many countries of the world and international business circles. For Russia the need to develop the Arctic is indisputable, and the NSRis the basis for development of the region. In addition, the region possesses a unique transport and logistics potential. It is believed that in the future it will connect the largest markets in Asia, Europe and North America with maritime transport corridors. Climatic changes and melting of ice are increasingly opening up the NSRfor navigation, and this leads to an increase in the attractiveness of this route. At the national level, the task is todevelop possibilities for turning the NSRinto an international transport corridor, similar to the Suez Canal. However, the transit potential of the NSR is not obvious. The article is aimed to determine the competitive capabilities of the NSRand assessits transit potential in the near future. To achieve the goal, it is necessary to identify strengths and weaknesses when using NSR, to conduct a comparative analysis of the known international routes (the Suez Canal) and this route, and to reveal prospects for the transit potential of the NSR, identifying the most likely potential transit transport participant —China.As a result of the study, it was concluded that in the near future the NSR will not compete with the Suez Canal and other international routes, but will be in demand as a national transport artery for transporting extracted oil and gas resources from the fields in the Arctic part of Russia. As to the transformation of the NSR into an international transport corridor, it will take huge financial and time resources, also Russia may have to sacrifice its strategic and geopolitical interests in the Arctic, which is currently unacceptable.