Finnish shipping company ESL Shipping has taken delivery of what is being touted as the world’s most eco-friendly bulk carrier.

The 160-meter, 25,600 dwt, LNG-fueled vessel, named Haaga, was delivered from Jinling Shipyard in Nanjing, China. The ice-class vessel can also be fueled by completely carbon-free biogas, once the availability of carbon-free biogas improves over time.

ESL Shipping says the ship generates less than 50% of the carbon dioxide emissions compared to previous-generation handysize vessels by minimizing its energy consumption and emissions.

In addition, the vessel features the world’s first autonomous cargo processing solution developed by ESL and MacGregor, which is part of Cargotec, to further improve safety and efficiency. The vessel will have raw material cargo while arriving from Japan to the Baltic Sea, where the vessel is currently scheduled to arrive in mid-September.

Haaga is one of two identical ships that will operate between the ports of Luleå, Oxelösund and Raahe in the northern Baltic Sea. 

“Our new vessels have met with an excellent reception among our customers. Every employee of our shipping company should be genuinely proud of what we have achieved during our new construction project”, says Mikki Koskinen, Managing Director of ESL Shipping, which is part of the Aspo Group.

“This investment of around EUR 60 million is significant for a company of Aspo’s size. It’s also an excellent example of our responsible ownership, as environmental responsibility involves considering future generations, too. The design and construction of the new vessels were completed as planned. The vessels will considerably increase ESL Shipping’s capacity, in addition to improving its profitability”, says Aki Ojanen, CEO of Aspo Plc and Chairman of the Board of Directors of ESL Shipping.

The newbuild project is part of the Bothnia Bulk project, partly funded by the EU. 

In addition, environmental emissions will decrease at port with the improved availability of shore-side electricity.

The vessels have been designed by Deltamarin in Finland, and European equipment suppliers have provided roughly 60 percent of all vessel systems.