Gasum will supply natural gas to eco ferry covering Finland-Sweden route

Gasum has signed an agreement with the City of Vaasa, NLC Ferry Oy and Wärtsilä Finland Oy to build a customer terminal in Vaskiluoto in Vaasa, from where the company will flexibly supply LNG with tanker trucks to cargo and passenger shipping company Wasaline’s new LNG-fueled ferry M/S Aurora Botnia, which will start operating later this year. It will also supply Wärtsilä’s new Smart Technology Hub, a place for research, product development and engineering, which will be completed in the fall. Gasum will also be able to serve other customers through the terminal.

“In the City of Vaasa’s Energy and Climate program, the ambition is for the city to be carbon-neutral in the 2020s. The city is committed to the goal of reducing emissions between different actors in the urban area. It’s good news that this cooperation helps us to increase the availability of gas across the Vaasa region. Our cooperation is also an example of how we in Vaasa are combining our expertise in the energy industry and creating cleaner energy solutions,” explained Tomas Häyry, Mayor of Vaasa.

“It’s good news that an LNG customer terminal is to be built in Vaskiluoto. We believe that the use of LNG will increase both on land and at sea and that demand for more environmentally friendly fuels will show further growth. At Wärtsilä’s Vaasa site, we develop LNG engines and other maritime innovations for example,” said Vesa Riihimäki, Director, Delivery Management, Wärtsilä Finland.

”The new ferry, M/S Aurora Botnia, which will operate the Vaasa-Umeå route, is nearing completion. Our ship will be the most eco-friendly passenger and car ferry currently under construction. The ship’s engines will run on LNG and moving forward also on renewable biogas. The ferry will accommodate 800 passengers and have a cargo capacity of 1,500 lane meters for trucks and cars. Sustainability is increasingly important to our customers and also to the entire Vaasa region,” commented Peter Ståhlberg, CEO of Wasaline.

“We are continuously developing new ways to reduce emissions together with our partners and customers. We want to help our customers to lower their own carbon footprint. Gas delivers significant cost-effective options to reach emission reductions both in maritime and road transport. This project will strengthen availability and enable customers to smoothly switch to using biogas,” added Tommy Mattila, Sales director, Industry, Gasum.