Stena Line includes Finland into its ferry route network
Swedish shipping company Stena Line has launched the first ferry route towards Finland. It connects Stockholm Norvik Port and the Port of Hanko. The new route marks the next step in Stena Line’s ambition to further expand and strengthen its position in the Baltic Sea.
Starting from 1 February, the company has been running on the Stockholm-Hanko ferry route between Sweden and Finland. The connection is being provided by the ro-pax vessel Urd with three departures per week. In early May, Stena Line will deploy the second ferry, Stena Gothica, on the route to increase the frequency to daily. Both vessels offer a capacity of 1,600 lane metres and give space to 186 passengers.
Floating bridge
“With the departure of the vessel Urd on this new route between Stockholm Norvik Port and Hanko, we are filling a gap in the transport network. Now when we have launched this new route, we have created a floating bridge between central Sweden and southern Finland, which is also something there has been a market demand for,” said Johan Edelman, trade director for Baltic Sea North at Stena Line, during the launching ceremony.
Freight customers
The Sweden-Finland ferry connection was launched in line with the needs of Stena Line’s freight customers, which are interested in moving trucks, semi-trailers, containers, special cargo and other intermodal units that arrive by rail. “The commitment of Stena Line in introducing yet another route from Stockholm Norvik Port emphasises how important the newly built port is for the sustainable supply of goods to Sweden’s largest consumer area. The port has robust intermodal connections to the rest of Sweden, both by road and by railway, and has the shortest distance to the shipping fairway of any port on the Swedish east coast,” said Fredrik Lindstål, Chair of the Board at Ports of Stockholm.