Construction of the world’s southernmost LNG-powered car and passenger ferry starts at Rauma, Finland
The start of production of a passenger and vehicle ferry was celebrated today at Rauma shipyard, according to the company's release. The construction of the Spirit of Tasmania IV, set to operate between mainland Australia and Tasmania, began with a traditional steel cutting ceremony. Even though the future route and the shipyard responsible for the construction are located on the opposite sides of the globe, trust and cooperation have been built over a long period of time.
The twin Spirit of Tasmania vessels will be constructed in Rauma. When finished, they will be the southernmost vessels to operate with LNG. In addition, the vessels will have a dual fuel solution, which will allow them to use other, alternative fuels, if needed.
Spirit of Tasmania (TT-Line Company), the purchaser of the vessels, is a significant player in maritime transport between mainland Australia and Tasmania. Currently, the Spirit of Tasmania-named vessels carry around 450,000 passengers each year. The new vessels will operate an extremely challenging route across the Bass Strait between Geelong, Victoria, and Devonport, Tasmania. The ferries have been specially designed to undertake this specific route.
The vessels will hold 1,800 passengers each and their gross tonnage will be approximately 48,000 metric tons. The new vessels will replace similarly Finnish-built sister ships from the 1990s. The first vessel will be finished in late 2023 and the second in late 2024.
For the city of Rauma and the surrounding region, the design and construction of the vessels will create a total of around 3,500 person-years’ worth of employment. The vessels are being built while the shipyard also finalises a new car and passenger ferry for Tallink and builds new multipurpose corvettes for the Finnish Defence Forces’ Squadron 2020 project.
