Parallel fairway in Vuosaari Harbour benefits the environment and boosts resilience
The fairway to Vuosaari Harbour around the west side of Pikku Niinisaari will be reopened to ship traffic in spring 2026. The fairway will ensure smoother traffic and make the visit to Vuosaari Harbour even more efficient. Taking the fairway into use will also reduce greenhouse gas emissions, being part of the development of the low-emission sea route between Helsinki and Tallinn, the FIN-EST Green Corridor project.
The fairway used to serve the shipyards that operated in Vuosaari 1974–2004. The name “Shipyard fairway” dates back to these times. Minor changes were made to the fairway to expand it slightly, and some dredging work was carried out to ensure the fairway’s efficiency and safety to modern ships. The floating safety devices were upgraded to larger ones in January.
“This fairway cannot accommodate the largest container ships, but it will offer us an option that serves roro vessels. It also helps to reduce the congestion of ship traffic on the main fairway and duplicating operations also improves the port’s resilience. In the initial stages, the fairway will be opened to Eckerö Line’s M/s Finbo Cargo, which visits Vuosaari up to three times a day,” says Tero Valu, Head of Operations of the Port of Helsinki.
“We consider this fairway a significant step forward for our environmental goals and for making the traffic between Vuosaari and Muuga even more efficient. The new fairway will ensure smoother traffic while also helping reduce fuel consumption and emissions per cargo unit,” states Finbo Cargo Captain Henrik Andersson.
The use of a parallel fairway helps a vessel save a few minutes of time per every harbour visit, allowing it to travel slower at sea. This saves fuel and lowers emissions. With Finbo Cargo’s around 800 annual visits to the Vuosaari Harbour, the time savings add up quickly.
Traficom decided on the fairway in January, and the route will be opened to ships in spring 2026, when the open water season starts. The fairway is part of the Port of Helsinki’s water areas, acting as a parallel route to the Vuosaari main fairway. During the initial stages, a separate training for using the fairway is required from the ships’ officers for practising skills also in challenging simulated scenarios.
The shipyard fairway:
- leads from Vuosaari fairway to Vuosaari Harbour around the west side of Pikku Niinisaari
- length 4 km, i.e. 2.2 NM
- maximum depth of 6.60 m
Helsinki-Tallinn Green Corridor (FIN-EST Green Corridor) is a joint initiative by Helsinki and Tallinn ports, cities and shipping companies, which aims to establish a sustainable, low-emission sea route between Helsinki and Tallinn for both passengers and cargo. The project, launched in 2023, focuses on initiatives such as the introduction of renewable fuels and promotion of sustainable tourism infrastructure and port operations.