Ports of Stockholm has together with the Port of Turku, Port of Mariehamn and Viking Line received EU support of EUR 12.7 million (USD 14.65 million) within the program Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) for the project NextGen Link.
The project involves the upgrade of an existing maritime link to cross the Baltic Sea from Finland to Sweden in the Scandinavian-Mediterranean Corridor and develops green shipping and port interconnections.
Under the project, the maritime link will be upgraded with a new sustainable LNG-powered RoPax vessel. In addition, the infrastructure development in the three above mentioned ports is planned.
Finnish ferry company Viking Line ordered earlier this year the new ship at China’s Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry which is expected to be delivered in 2020.
Project NextGen Link is in line with the EU’s priorities in the Trans-European Transport Networks (TEN-T) program as it contributes to the increased use of sustainable ship fuels, thereby reducing emissions and improving the link between Turku and Stockholm.
The EU project, led by the Port of Turku, started in January this year and is expected to be completed by the end of June 2020.
World Maritime News Staff