The Chinese CIMC Raffles shipbuilding yard handed over the brand-new con-ro vessel to Wallenius Sol on 13 May 2022, the first in a series of two.

The Swedish-flagged ship, 242 by 35.2 m and offering 5,800 lane metres of carrying capacity, is expected to visit its first European port of call, Antwerp, at the end of June 2022.

Once in regular traffic, the 1A Super ice-class Botnia Enabler will serve the Zeebrugge-Antwerp-Kokkola-Skellefteå-Oulu-Kemi-Travemünde stretch.

According to the shipping line, thanks to the new vessel, the service's ro-ro and container capacities will increase by 100% and 300%, respectively.

Wallenius Sol calls Botnia Enabler a multi-fuel ship, meaning she can sail on liquefied natural gas (LNG), bioLNG, diesel and its synthetic version.

"We are extremely proud that we can welcome Botnia Enabler to our fleet. She is expected both by our customers and us," commented Ragnar Johansson, Wallenius Sol's Managing Director.

He furthered, "This freighter will play an important role for our clients, who need more capacity, and for us and our ability to decrease the climate impact."

Photo: Henrik Sundkvist/Wallenius Sol