NLC Ferry Ab Oy | Press release | 29.04.2025
Wasaline takes major step towards climate-neutral shipping
Wasaline is making a significant leap toward sustainable maritime transport by expanding the onboard battery capacity of Aurora Botnia with an additional 10.4 MWh, to be delivered in autumn 2025. The battery supplier is marine battery specialist AYK Energy, and the batteries will be in operation in January 2026. The batteries are of the LFP (Lithium Iron Phosphate) type, known for their safety and long lifespan.
This investment is projected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 23%. Since operations began in January 2013 with the Wasa Express, emissions are reduced by 77% per trip, which meets the EU’s climate goal of a 55% reduction in emissions by 2030 compared to 1990 levels.
From the initial planning of Wasalines Aurora Botnia, the company set the target of achieving fully carbon-neutral operations by 2030. This hybrid vessel is a equipped with dual-fuel engines and 2.2 MWh batteries, and it uses electric-powered Azimuth thrusters. The new battery upgrade is expected to further cut fossil energy use by approximately 10,000 MWh annually.
The current battery capacity of Aurora Botnia is 2.2 MWh.
Built at Rauma Marine Constructions, the hybrid ROPAX Ferry Aurora Botnia entered service August 28, 2021. The ferry is equipped with dual-fuel engines and batteries and is using LNG, biogas and batteries for the propulsion. Passengers and cargo customers can also offset their climate footprint.
“We are continuously working to establish the Vaasa–Umeå route as a green shipping corridor. There’s growing demand for environmentally friendly transport, and intermodal cargo transportation from Europe is increasing yearly. This means the entire transport chain can be carbon-neutral today. Expanding our battery capacity is a major step that allows us to make our vessel even more sustainable and allocate more capacity to batteries and biogas. Our collaboration with Finland’s and the region’s energy clusters makes innovative solutions like this possible and we are proud to be a forerunner in the industry”, says Peter Ståhlberg, Managing Director of Wasaline.
“This is the largest battery retrofit on a vessel to date, and we are extremely proud to be partnering with Wasaline as the provider of this advanced battery solution. Being recognized once again as a reliable and cost-effective supplier is extremely gratifying”, says Chris Kruger, Founder and President at AYK Energy.
“This project exemplifies AYK’s vision of bringing high quality, safe and cost-effective solutions to address our customers requirements for environmentally friendly transport. The transition to electric and hybrid vessels is accelerating, and the AYK/Wasaline partnership is an excellent example of how working together strategically can make the change happen.”
For more information, contact:
Peter Ståhlberg, Managing Director, Wasaline [email protected], +358 40 559 2353
About Wasaline
Wasaline operates the daily ferry service between Vaasa in Finland and Umeå in Sweden. The crossing is the northernmost year-round international ferry route in the world, serving both passengers and freight.
The modern hybrid ferry Aurora Botnia is powered by biogas and batteries. The Key Flag has been awarded to the ferry as a symbol of Finnish work. Wasaline is part of Stena Line.
