Finn­li­nes boosts freight capa­ci­ty for Ros­tock service

Finn­li­nes streng­the­ned its Finland–Germany freight ser­vice in the spring to meet increased demand for capa­ci­ty and fre­quen­cy from cus­to­mers. By adjus­ting rou­tes and adding a third ro-ro ves­sel to the Ros­tock ser­vice, Finn­li­nes can offer more depar­tures from Ros­tock and at the same time increase capa­ci­ty signi­fi­cant­ly. The rou­te chan­ge enables Finn­li­nes to pro­vi­de its cus­to­mers one addi­tio­nal weekly depar­tu­re and, in addi­ti­on, a direct con­nec­tion to Helsinki. 

At pre­sent, the­re are two weekly depar­tures from both Hel­sin­ki and Hanko to Ros­tock. The new sche­du­le increa­ses the fre­quen­cy of depar­tures bet­ween Ros­tock and Fin­land from three to four per week. Simul­ta­neous­ly, the Helsinki–Travemünde–Aarhus line has shifted its Ger­ma­ny port of call to Rostock. 

“This chan­ge streng­thens Finn­li­nes’ posi­ti­on in the Bal­tic Sea. We have increased the num­ber of depar­tures from Ros­tock and now offer four weekly depar­tures to two main ports in Fin­land. This will also bols­ter Rostock’s posi­ti­on as a key port in the Sou­thern Bal­tic Sea,” says Tor­kel Saar­nio, Finn­li­nes’ Line Mana­ger. “Our work con­ti­nues as we deve­lop our ser­vices to meet our cus­to­mers’ needs. Tog­e­ther with our cus­to­mers, we are explo­ring pos­si­bi­li­ties to streng­then con­nec­tions to ports in wes­tern Fin­land, such as Tur­ku and Uusik­au­pun­ki. If the mar­ket deve­lo­ps as we hope, we will deploy addi­tio­nal ton­na­ge when the time is right.” 

“With shorta­ge of dri­vers and high road die­sel cos­ts, the inter­mo­dal busi­ness is gro­wing. The new fleet plan will not only meet the mar­ket needs but also rein­force our posi­ti­on as a green ship­ping ope­ra­tor, as CO2 emis­si­ons per unit will decrease signi­fi­cant­ly. Trai­ler volu­mes are incre­asing, and the growth in steel, paper, and car ship­ments fore­casts a bright future. Sus­tainable values and incre­asing cos­ts are boos­ting the busi­ness towards even grea­ter suc­cess,” con­ti­nues Saarnio. 

Curr­ent­ly, Finn­li­nes’ ves­sels call the port of Ros­tock six times a week. One Breeze-class ves­sel sails bet­ween Hanko, which is the sou­thern­most port in Fin­land, and Ros­tock, two ope­ra­te on the rou­te which con­nects Hel­sin­ki, Ros­tock, Aar­hus and Tra­ve­mün­de. The Breeze-class ves­sels can car­ry any type of car­go. The space onboard, a total of 4,192 lane met­res, can be fil­led effi­ci­ent­ly as cars can be loa­ded on hoista­ble decks and trai­lers below them.