Over the past two years CMP has been planning, building and preparing for its move to Malmö’s North Harbour, Norra Hamnen. On Monday 16 May the move will become a reality as Finnlines reroutes all its ferry services here. On the same day CMP combi traffic operation, which handles rail freight, will also move to the North Harbour.

“On Monday all ferry traffic will disappear from Malmö’s inner city, which is a big advantage in many ways, not least because there will be fewer lorries driving through the centre of town. The new terminal is larger and much more modern than the one we have today, which will eventually enable us to double our capacity on the RoRo side,” Bart Steijaert, who heads CMP’s port and terminal operations, says.

Finnlines will be the first shipping line to serve the new terminal. The company handles 250,000 trailers and lorries in Malmö each year. In addition to freight handling, Finnlines also offers passenger services between Malmö and Travemünde, a route which has seen a sharp increase in passengers in recent years. At 4 p.m. on 16 May a ferry will depart for the first time from the North Harbour.

“The move to the new terminal in the North Harbour will enable Finnlines to develop its freight and passenger services and make Malmö an even more important hub connecting Sweden to the Continent. A few months ago we added one more ship to the route, which has enabled us to increase the number of weekly departures between Malmö and Travemünde to 44. In a few years time we hope to increase that figure to 52”, Antonio Raimo, Line Manager at Finnlines, says.

The new terminal can accommodate three ferries simultaneously. The water depth is 8.5 metres, but can be increased to 10 metres in future. In total, some 900 million kronor will be invested in the new harbour, which will increase CMP’s freight capacity in Malmö by a factor of five.

On 16 May CMP will also take the new Combi Terminal into use. The first departure will be with TX Logistik, at 9 p.m. This terminal is used to connect rail traffic to the North Harbour. There is an 800 metre long connection track as well as two loading and unloading tracks, where freight from an entire train set can be handled.

In the next few days a large container crane will be delivered to the North Harbour. The crane is 70 metres tall and will be visible from all over Malmö.