News
Commuter ferries on the Utö route will transfer to the ownership of Suomen Saaristovarustamo Oy at noon on 19 May 2023
Following a transaction confirmed today, 19 May 2023, the commuter ferries M/S Baldur, M/S Kökar and M/S Tuuli will transfer to the ownership of Suomen Saaristovarustamo Oy at noon today. Under the terms of the transaction, responsibility for the operation of the Utö route will also transfer to Suomen Saaristovarustamo Oy.
On 31 May 2023, M/S Baldur will be docked at the Naantali shipyard, where the commuter ferry will be painted in the company’s colours, and its general appearance will be revamped. The commuter ferry is expected to return to service on 14 June 2023.
While M/S Baldur is at the shipyard, traffic service on the route will be provided by the reserve vessel M/S Kökar.
Further information:
Håkan Fagerström, CEO, Finferries
Tel: +358 40 515 6329, email: hakan.fagerstrom(at)finferries.fi
Suomen Saaristovarustamo Oy has signed a conditional agreement on the purchase of the vessels operating the Utö route
Suomen Saaristovarustamo Oy, part of the Suomen Lauttaliikenne Group, has on 2 May 2023, signed a conditional agreement on the purchase of the vessels ms Baldur and ms Kökar owned by Saariston Meritie Oy, and ms Tuuli owned by Kuljetus Savolainen Oy.
Finalising the trade will transfer the service agreement, operating commitment and personnel of the Utö route vessels to Suomen Saaristovarustamo Oy. The deal is due to be completed by 19 May 2023.
Further information:
Håkan Fagerström, CEO, Finferries
tel: +358 40 515 6329, email: hakan.fagerstrom(at)finferries.fi
Finferries announces new CEO
Håkan Fagerström, deputy CEO of Suomen Lauttaliikenne Group (Finferries) has been appointed CEO of the company effective 28 April 2023. Mats Rosin, who has been CEO since 2010, is retiring.
I wish Håkan good luck and Mats a well-deserved and fulfilling retirement.
More information:
Juha Heikinheimo, +358 40 501 5181
Chairman of the Board
Finferries modernises the commuter ferry fleet in the Turku archipelago
Finferries’ newbuilding, the commuter ferry Innamo, was christened in Turku, Finland, on Friday 24 March 2023. The traditional christening duty was carried out by the ship’s godmother Tuovi Päiviö, Director of Transport and Infrastructure at the Southwest Finland Centre for Economic Development, Transport and the Environment.
“It was a great honour to have Tuovi Päiviö, representing our largest client, christen our commuter ferry Innamo in keeping with tradition,” says Finferries’ CEO Mats Rosin. About the new commuter ferry, Rosin says, “The vessel’s main engine together with a catalytic converter that utilises urea meet the Tier III emission requirements set by the IMO and significantly reduce the vessel’s nitrogen emissions.”
The contract to build the new commuter ferry was concluded with Oy HL-Metal Ab shipyard, which operates in Pargas. HL-Metal carried out the finishing work on the ferry in co-operation with the Oy RMR Merirakenne shipyard in Turku.
Over the years, Finferries has focused on developing and modernising its commuter ferry operations with safety and the environment in mind. The oil recovery and commuter vessel Otava began operating on the Kotka–Pyhtää route in 2014. Otava was built to withstand demanding archipelago conditions in the southeastern archipelago of Finland.
Finferries is pleased to introduce a new ferry to serve commuters of the island communities. Commuter ferry traffic was in need of an update, since before Innamo and Otava, the last new vessel entered into service roughly 30 years ago.
The commuter ferry Innamo is 29.44 metres long and 7.8 metres wide, has a draught of 2.2 metres deep and a deadweight of 25 tonnes. The ferry can accommodate 8 cars, and its maximum permitted number of passengers is 99. There is room for 50 people in the passenger lounge area.
Innamo will begin operating along the Nauvo Northern route in the Turku archipelago in May 2023.
Finferries' environmentally friendly cable ferry started operating in the Turku Archipelago
Finland’s largest and most environmentally friendly cable ferry, the battery-hybrid L-317, started operating on the Nauvo–Korppoo route at 11 a.m. today, 21 February 2023.
Finferries’ new cable ferry was built at the Crist S.A. shipyard in Poland. The cable ferry uses shore-powered battery packs as its primary energy sources, with diesel generators as a back-up.
The cable ferry is 70.2 metres long and 13.9 metres wide and has a draught of 2.5 metres. The cable ferry accommodates 52 cars, and its maximum permitted number of passengers is 200.
“L-317 replaces Prostvik 1, the ferry that previously operated on the Nauvo-Korppoo route. Since its predecessor only accommodated roughly 30 passenger cars, the new ferry almost doubles the capacity for passenger cars on this route. Prostvik 1 will be used as a reserve ferry on the route,” says Mats Rosin, CEO of Suomen Lauttaliikenne Group.
“Over the years, we have strongly focused on environmentally friendly hybrid technology to reduce our carbon footprint. The carbon dioxide emissions of the battery-hybrid cable ferry are 85 per cent lower compared to Prostvik 1. In addition to the new Nauvo–Korppoo cable ferry, the battery-hybrid ferries Altera and Elektra operate along the Archipelago Road in Parainen on the Parainen–Nauvo route, substantially reducing our company’s carbon dioxide emissions,” says Rosin.
Further information:
Mats Rosin
CEO