Minister Tuppurainen christens Finferries’s newest eco-friendly Altera ferry

Published on 14.09.2022

Finferries’s newbuilding, the battery-hybrid ferry Altera, was christened today, 14 September 2022, at Pakkahuoneenlaituri in Helsinki. The christening was attended by invited guests and the media. The traditional christening of the vessel was carried out by the godmother of the ship Tytti Tuppurainen, the Finnish Minister for European Affairs and Ownership Steering.

“It is an honour for us to have Tytti Tuppurainen christen the newest eco-friendly addition to our fleet. Altera allows us to reduce the carbon footprint of our operations in line with Finland’s environmental targets. Altera’s CO2 emissions decrease by more than 85 per cent compared to a similar conventional ferry operating on diesel,” explains Mats Rosin, CEO of Suomen Lauttaliikenne Group.

Altera’s energy sources are primarily batteries charged using shore power, which are always charged when the vessel docks. Alongside the batteries, the vessel will use back-up diesel power, which can be used, for example, during winters with heavy ice build-up or during power outages or other abnormal situations.

Work on the ferry was begun in July 2021 at the Polish CRIST S.A. shipyard. Finland’s first battery-hybrid ferry Elektra was built at the same shipyard. Siemens supplied the batteries, electric motors, control system and other related equipment.

“The shipyard and Siemens have valuable experience from building Elektra and we are happy that we were able to continue our successful collaboration with Altera. Altera, which was built based on the model of Elektra (received in 2017), is a significantly upgraded version in terms of its battery and hybrid technology, for example. The waste heat generated by the vessel’s systems is recovered and the ship’s energy efficient hull design is at the cutting edge of its sector. The batteries are charged with green electricity,” says Mats Rosin.

“These improvements make the vessel even more energy efficient and eco-friendly,” adds Rosin.

Finland’s second battery-hybrid ferry Altera is 104 metres long, 15.20 metres wide and has a capacity of 92 cars. Altera will begin operating along the Parainen–Nauvo route by 1 January 2023, paired up with Elektra.