The world's most ecological massage ships are already sailing across the Baltic

The Finnish shipping company ESL Shipping, belonging to the capital group Aspo, introduced a pair of new masseurs – Viiki and Haaga. These are modern units powered by liquefied natural gas, which has been hailed as the world's most ecological cargo ships.

ESL Shipping from Aspo Group is one of the strongest companies specialising in the transport of dry bulk cargo in the Baltic Sea region. The company has been operating for almost 70 years and its main customers are companies operating in the energy, steel and chemical sectors. The company carries raw materials for them, such as coal or iron ore. The fleet of the Finnish company consists of 20 units with a total tonnage of 332,000 tonnes.

Last year, the company ordered two new bulk carriers equipped with green liquefied natural gas. ESL Shipping participates in the project Bothia Bulk, which co-finances the European Union. It aims to modernise maritime connections between the Baltic ports Luleå, Oxelösund and Raahe in such a way as to adapt them to environmental regulations.

In 2017, a contract to build two sister units was acquired by the Chinese shipyard Jinling Shipyard in Nanjing, part of the Sinotrans & CSC Shipbuilding Industry Corporation. When the ship construction contract was announced, it was announced that they would enter regular use in the second half of 2018 and that the deadline was met. The construction of two units cost around EUR 60 million.

On 14 November, Finnish company ESL Shipping reported that both units – Viiki and Haaga – had begun operating in the Baltic Sea. It's the world's first large, liquefied natural gas-powered massage. The hulls of 160-meter units were reinforced to meet the requirements of the 1A-grade ice. Thanks to state-of-the-art technology, the shipowner managed to significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions. In the case of Viiki and Haaga, it will be 50% less than the older ships in the ESL Shipping fleet. The survey conducted on a voyage from Japan to Finland showed that emissions were reduced by approximately 40% of ESL Shipping, stressing that new ships meet the environmental requirements of IMO standards that will enter into force in 2025.

The ships were designed to regularly operate several port connections in the northern Baltic Sea region. Units will often use their own automatic cranes, which were designed in collaboration with MacGregor.

All indications suggest that the new ESL Shipping ships will be heavily exploited. 90% of exports and 80% of Finnish imports are carried out using maritime transport. Due to its geographical location, it is the cheapest and most important logistics branch.

The units designed the Finnish Deltamarin office. Although it was built by the Chinese shipyard, 60% of the equipment and equipment provided by European companies.

Signature: AM