The construction of Finnlines’ second new hybrid ro-ro vessel started at the Chinese Nanjing Jinling shipyard on Wednesday, September 16, with a traditional steel-cutting ceremony.
The vessel is part of Finnlines’ ongoing € 500 million ($592 million) newbuilding programme, which includes three green hybrid ro-ro vessels as well as two eco-friendly Superstar ro-pax ships.
In addition to lithium-ion battery banks, which enable ‘zero emissions in port’, the vessels will be equipped with several advanced technologies to save energy and cut emissions, including an innovative air lubrication system to reduce hull resistance.
The ro-ro vessels are expected to be delivered during 2021–2022 and the Superstar ro-pax vessels are set to start in traffic in 2023.
The construction on the company’s first RORO vessel from the series was launched in June this year.
The new hybrid ro-ro vessels will be named Finneco I, Finneco II and Finneco III in honour the green innovations.
“Over the past ten years, we have steered investments to energy efficiency and green technologies and our newbuilding programme focuses on further energy-saving features. These new ultra-green vessels will offer our customers very sustainable liner services in the future,” says Emanuele Grimaldi , CEO of Finnlines.
Intended for operation in the Baltic Sea, the vessels will have the highest Finnish/Swedish ice class.
Once completed, the hybrid RoRos will feature a length of 238 metres and a breadth of 34 metres. They will have a cargo capacity of 5,800 lane metres and 5,600 square metres of car decks as well as about 300 TEU on weather deck.