We were the legal adviser in three arrangements for the financing of the acquisition of three new ultra-green hybrid cargo vessels by Finnish shipping company Finnlines Plc. The new hybrid cargo vessels will be equipped with high-powered battery banks and photovoltaics, which will allow the ships to use electricity and operate emission-free while docked. The vessels will be delivered during 2021–2022 and will operate on routes between Finland and Europe.
These new vessels are larger than the ships Finnlines currently has in use and will increase the company’s transport capacity substantially. The design of the vessels’ hull, the propeller-rudder system and the innovative air lubrication under the keel will reduce friction and hydrodynamic resistance and, thus, significantly reduce the environmental impact.
Finnlines Plc is the largest shipping company in Finland, providing passenger and freight transport, as well as stevedoring services in Helsinki, Turku and Naantali. Founded in 1947, the company currently employs around 1,600 people. Finnlines Plc is a leading shipping operator of ro-ro and passenger services in the Baltic Sea, the North Sea and the Bay of Biscay. The Company is a part of the Grimaldi Group, one of the world’s largest operators of ro-ro vessels and the largest operator of the Motorways of the Sea in Europe for both passengers and freight.
