Uncategorized

SEE CONFERENCE PROGRAM HERE! #komarec23

“Collaborative Science for Sustainable Maritime Practices in a Changing World”

Kotka Maritime Research Conference #komarec23 will launch a new event to generate dialogue between the academia and other sectors of society, creating rich pictures of the potential pathways to more sustainable maritime practices. The event will provide researchers studying maritime sustainability related themes an opportunity to bring out their results and ideas and discuss with stakeholders whose representatives are invited to act as keynote speakers and commentators. 

Conference aims to: 
1) map and increase awareness of the ongoing research contributing to sustainable development of maritime practices.
2) discuss about the potential societal implications of the presented studies.
3) identify current and future knowledge needs.

PROGRAM

Day 1 – Wednesday 8.11.2023

11:00 Lunch in Satama Areena (self-funded)

Event hostess
Anna Kiiski, Executive Director, Kotka Maritime Research Centre

12:00 OPENING WORDS
Toni Vanhala, Director, City Development and Communications, City of Kotka

12:10 KEYNOTE SPEECH
Floris Goerlandt, Associate professor, Dalhausie University, Canada
Enhancing Arctic shipping sustainability through transformative risk governance: A Canadian perspective

13:00 Refresment break

13:20 SESSION 1
TOOLS FOR MINIMISING THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF SHIPPING

Chairs of the Session 1
Mats Björkendahl, Finnish Shipowners’ Association
Mia Hytti, Baltic Sea Action Group 

Tightening environmental rules change maritime traffic
Tapaninen, U., Otsason, R., Tombak, M-L., Hunt, T., Laasma, A.
GHG emission reduction potential of fuels
Kuusisto, S., Alve, H., Haara, R-M, Rautelin, W.  
Analysis of shipping emissions based on the sustainability index
Tanhuanpää, T., Altarriba, E., Rahiala, S.  
Existing technologies and scientific advancements to reduce CO2 emissions from ships by retrofitting
Kondratenko, A., Tavakoli, S., Zhang, M., Taimuri, G., Hirdaris, S.
Bayesian meta-analysis model for assessing bioeconomic impacts of oil spills on fisheries
Vikkula, S., Kuikka, S., Mäntyniemi, S. 
A decision support model to promote sustainable biofouling management in the Baltic Sea
Luoma, E., Laurila-Pant, M., Altarriba, E., Nevalainen, L., Helle, I., Lehikoinen, A. 

15:00 Refresment break

15:30 SESSION 2
INNOVATIVE APPROACHES TO DECISION SUPPORT FOR ENERGY-EFFICIENT WINTER NAVIGATION 

Chairs of the Session 2
Helena Orädd, Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency
Eero Hokkanen, Ministry of Transport and Communications

Energy efficiency Optimization for Ice-going ship operations: A focus on optimal power management strategies for Battery electric RoPax ships
Okonkwo, A.

Navigation modes classification using a machine learning method
Liu, C., Musharraf, M., Kulkarni, K.

Enhancing sustainability of Finnish-Swedish Winter Navigation System by intelligent icebreaking assistance
Kondratenko, A., Kulkarni, K., Li, F., Musharraf, M., Hirdaris, S., Kujala, P.

Decision-support for winter navigation operations
Musharraf, M., Kulkarni, K., Liu, C., Kujala, P.  

16:45 DAY DIALOGUE SUMMARY
Annukka Lehikoinen, Research Director, Kotka Maritime Research Centre

CLOSING

18:00 Merikotka (KMRC) alumni meeting (requires a separate registration)
19:00 Conference Dinner (requires a separate registration)

 

Day 2 – Thursday 9.11.2023

Event hostess
Anna Kiiski, Executive Director, Kotka Maritime Research Centre

9:00 Opening

9:05 KEYNOTE SPEECH
Rüdiger Strempel, Executive Secretary, HELCOM
Looking beyond the surface: HELCOM’s contribution to environmentally sustainable sea-based activities
9:45 SESSION 3
SOCIETAL PERSPECTIVES TO SMART SHIPS AND PORTS 
Chairs of the Session 3
Päivi Brunou, Mechanical Engineering and Metals Industry Standardization METSTA
Ilkka Rytkölä, Mayer Turku Shipyard
Towards smart regulations: an analysis of the effectiveness of international maritime regulations
Olaniyi, E., Solarte-Vasquez, M. C., Inkinen, T. 
The Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Maritime Context: Legal Challenges and Implications for Sustainability
Schütte, B.
An explorative study of anticipatory infrastructural alignment for autonomous shipping
Janasik, N., Luoma, E., Knudsen, M. 
Potential of explainable AI in enhancing trust in autonomous vessels – a systematic literature review
Musharraf, M., Ranjan, R., Kulkarni, K. 
Analysis of autonomous ships’ impact on the maritime practitioners required skills
Bolbot, V. Methlouthia, O., Chaal, M., Valdez Banda, O., BahooToroody, A., Tsvetkova, A., Hellström, M., Saarni, J., Virtanen, S. 
11.10 Refresment break
11:40 SESSION 4
RISK ANALYTICS AND LEARNING TO ENHANCE MARITIME SAFETY 

Chairs of the Session 4
Mirka Laurila-Pant, Finnish Transport and Communications Agency
Olli-Pekka Brunila, South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences

Is scientific learning effective enough in maritime risk analysis?
Kuikka, S. & Lu, L. 
Real-Time Bayesian Risk Modeling for Maritime Industry: A Hierarchical Approach for Dynamic Risk Estimation and Control
Bolbot, V., Basnet, S., BahooToroody, A., Valdez Banda, O.
Developing Fuzzy Logic Strength of Evidence and Integration for System Risk Management
Lu, L. & Kuikka, S.
Artificial intelligence -based virtual control room 
Markkanen, M., Räsänen, J., Kropsu, M. & Partanen, P. 
Comparing Low-Fidelity and High-Fidelity simulations from a pedagogical perspective
Salmi, A.
13.10 DAY DIALOGUE SUMMARY 
Annukka Lehikoinen, Research Director, Kotka Maritime Research Centre
CLOSING
Lunch in Satama Areena (self-funded)
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

The rights to program changes are reserved. 

Call for Abstracts opened

Kotka Maritime Research Conference aims to:

1) map and increase awareness of the ongoing research contributing to sustainable development of maritime practices.
2) discuss about the potential societal implications of the presented studies.
3) identify current and future knowledge needs.

We invite abstracts on research-driven results, ideas, and solutions that have potential to contribute to sustainable development of maritime operations in the changing world.

Here, sustainable operation means such way of operating that serves the human well-being by enabling moving of people and goods, and advancing economics, while not degrading the environment, nor compromising the human safety or equality. Any angle of entry into this definition is welcome but must be opened in the abstract.

The abstracts can contribute for example to the following questions:

Digitalization, AI, automation: Increased digitalization, machine learning and artificial intelligence in maritime operations and design has brought new opportunities in terms of achieving sustainability goals, but also additional risks and challenges e.g. related to cybersecurity, regulations and policies, work-life wellbeing, and educational needs. How to take the opportunities and avoid or control the risks?

Socio-political challenges: How have maritime practices evolved in the face of the global COVID-19 pandemic, geopolitical tensions, and under the impact of global economic crisis? How do these affect the achievement of the sustainability goals? What could be done to ensure the sustainable development despite the challenges?

Changing traffic and transportation flows: The changing world changes maritime traffic parameters and freights. How does this affect maritime risks and resilience, and further on the sustainability of the operation? What tools or measures can support risk management or improve resilience, to ensure the sustainability?

Alternative fuels and energy sources, air emissions: National and international agreements and new regulatory instruments create pressure to substantially decrease greenhouse gas emissions from maritime operations. Do they work as intended? What is the potential of new alternative fuels and other energy sources here? How sustainable solutions are they?

Other maritime emissions: How do the other emission types from maritime operations prevent the sector from achieving the sustainability criteria? How could these challenges be solved? What cross- and joint impacts with other blue economy sectors, as well as intersectoral management measures and strategies, should be considered?

Consequences of and adaptation to climate change: How do the consequences of climate change, such as more frequent extreme weathers or changes in the sea ice, affect the sustainability of maritime operation? How to adapt?

Instructions

Submit your abstract no later than 7 May 2023 via email to merikotka@merikotka.fi. NB! ABSTRACT SUBMISSION EXTENDED TO 21 MAY.

Title of the message should be: Abstract submission KOMAREC.

Please, download and use this MS Word -template for the formulation of your abstract and attach the file to the email.

Based on the abstracts received, the organizing committee will form logical thematic sessions of oral presentations (8-10 minutes + discussion) and an interactive poster session. On 20 June, the authors will be notified whether their contributions have been selected as an oral or a poster presentation. The authors whose abstracts are accepted as oral presentations will be asked to provide an extended abstract of two pages no later than 15 September.

We’ll request from the authors a permission to publish the abstracts on the conference website as open access. From our side this does not limit the authors’ use of the material for other purposes.

Questions

For questions or additional information, please contact merikotka@merikotka.fi

The organizer reserves right to make changes to the plans.

Kotka Maritime Research Conference #komarec23

“Collaborative Science for Sustainable Maritime Practices in a Changing World”

Kotka Maritime Research Centre (Merikotka) is organising the first Kotka Maritime Research Conference #komarec23. Merikotka is a society of researchers and experts from the leading Finnish universities and research organisations with a shared mission to advance the sustainable development of maritime activities through interdisciplinary research and active societal dialogue, closely interacting with the other sectors of blue economy.

#komarec23 will launch a new event to promote this mission. The conference aims to generate dialogue between the academia and other sectors of society, creating rich pictures of the potential pathways to more sustainable maritime practices. The event will provide researchers studying maritime sustainability related themes an opportunity to bring out their results and ideas and discuss with stakeholders whose representatives are invited to act as keynote speakers and commentators.

We wish the event will increase the societal impact of scientific research, give rise to novel ideas, and generate interdisciplinary and -sectoral collaboration. Abstracts are invited from researchers representing a wide variety of disciplines, including both social, natural, and technical spheres.

PROGRAM
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Important dates

6 April 2023 – Call for abstracts opened and published
7 May 2023 – Deadline for the abstract submission
21 May 2023 – ABSTRACT SUBMISSION EXTENDED
20 June 2023 – Invitations for the oral and poster presentations sent to the authors
15 August 2023 – The registration opens
25 September 2023 – Deadline for the submission of extended abstracts (2 p, oral presentations)
25 September 2023 – Registration deadline for the presenters (oral and poster)
25 October 2023 – Registration deadline for the other participants
8-9 November 2023 – Kotka Maritime Research Conference 2023

Practicalities

Venue: The conference venue is the brand new Event Centre Satama, located in the charming coastal city of Kotka. The city center, an island surrounded by the Baltic Sea, is known e.g. for its numerous parks, the Maritime Centre Vellamo, and the Maretarium aquarium – all within walking distance.

Connections: You can easily reach Kotka by bus or train. There are daily bus services from Helsinki, Tampere, Lahti and Jyväskylä. Check the schedules at Matkahuolto. For the train timetables and tickets, see VR.

Accommodation: The organizer has reserved a quota of hotel rooms from the Sokos Hotel Seurahuone, see Reservation information.

Other accommodation options are available e.g. in Hotel Jokipuisto, Hotel Uninen, Hotel Merikotka or via Airbnb.

Registration: The conference is free of charge. Registration is required both from the presenters and audience. The registration system will open in August. Registration can be canceled free of charge if the cancellation is made no later than 2 days before the event. No-show fee 150 €.

Background

Functional and safe shipping, port operations, and maritime infrastructures are important enablers of international trade and passenger traffic – often providing the most energy- and climate-efficient form of transportation. In many corners of the world, the operational environment of the maritime sector is undergoing several forms of transitions in parallel, while at the same time there is a growing pressure to ensure the continuous sustainable development of the operation.

The international climate goals and ongoing green transition affect the maritime operations through diverse mechanisms, changing traffic flows, cargoes, fuels, and vessels. On top of that, the impacts of the climate change, such as more frequent extreme weathers, or the changes in ice cover, require adaptation of many types. Digitalization and the following increase of artificial intelligence in different parts of maritime systems provide promising opportunities, but also give rise to new risks. The geopolitical tensions create diverse safety and security threats as well.

While the maritime sector is struggling with the above challenges, it should not be forgotten the other blue sectors have high expectations for the use of the sea space too, including renewable energy producers, fisheries and aquaculture sector, mining and drilling companies, as well as the tourism sector and recreational users. Simultaneously the underwater life is severely threatened due to the pressures caused by the human activities. Just recently the UN member states agreed on a treaty to conserve 30% of the world’s high seas by 2030. Accordingly, there is a growing pressure to reconcile the maritime operations with the other forms of sea exploitation in a sustainable manner.

Due to all the aspects mentioned above, it can be stated the framing and structure of maritime systems, as well as their operative environments and “risk landscapes”, are undergoing radical changes in these days. Adapting to the situation and ensuring a sustainable transition to sustainable operations requires close interdisciplinary and intersectoral collaboration among actors with different roles in the society, including policymakers, authorities, infrastructure and service providers, companies, researchers, educational institutes, and the common public.

Questions

For questions or additional information, please contact merikotka@merikotka.fi
The organizer reserves right to make changes to the plans.


Scientific committee 

Chair:
Research Director Annukka Lehikoinen
Kotka Maritime Research Centre 

Members: 
Assistant Professor Floris Goerlandt, Dalhousie University
Associate Professor Spyros Hirdaris, Aalto University
Professor Tommi Inkinen, University of Turku
Professor Sakari Kuikka, University of Helsinki
Associate Professor Jakub Montewka, Gdańsk University of Technology
Assistant Professor Mashrura Musharraf, Aalto University
Professor Gunnar Prause, Tallinn University of Technology
Assistant Professor Osiris Valdez Banda, Aalto University
Professor Mary Wisz, World Maritime University

Organizing committe

Chair:
Executive Director Anna Kiiski
Kotka Maritime Research Centre 

Members:
Tiina Jauhiainen, Research Manager, South-Eastern University of Applied Science
Ketki Kulkarni, Research Fellow, Aalto University
Annukka Lehikoinen, Research Director, Kotka Maritime Research Centre
Liangliang Lu, Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Helsinki
Eunice Olaniyi, Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Turku

CLICK HERE TO REGISTER

Interested in algorithms and probability distributions? – Contact us, we are recruiting

Kotka Maritime Research Association is seeking a qualified and motivated

RESEARCHER/CODER

to automate the translation of expert-elicited causal mental maps to quantitative probabilistic Bayesian Networks (BN) as part of the Academy of Finland-funded project GYROSCOPE. The generated code will be used in a participatory foresight modelling process to help maritime stakeholders better understand their situational picture and identify key risk or resilience factors.

Key tasks are

  • Reviewing and potentially updating the current translation algorithm.
  • Constructing the R or Python code needed to generate conditional probability tables, following the agreed logic.

Qualifications

The ideal applicant will be someone who:

  • can contribute to the algorithm design and independently produce the code (R or Python).
  • is familiar with the concepts of conditional probability distributions and discrete variables.
  • has previous knowledge of Bayesian inference and Bayesian networks.
  • can contribute to the writing of a scientific manuscript concerning the method.

The position is available from 1 September 2023 to 29 February 2024 (6 months), with the possibility of part-time work. Salary for this position will consist of a task-specific component and a personal salary component based on the applicant’s qualifications and experience, as per the contract terms.

Application

Submit your application no later than 21 May 2023 by email to Executive Director Anna Kiiski (anna.kiiski@merikotka.fi) with “Gyroscope coder” as the subject line. The application should consist of a short (max 1 page) motivation letter with a statement of the desired salary level, and a CV.

Inquiries

Please address any inquiries to Research Director Annukka Lehikoinen.
Email: annukka.lehikoinen@merikotka.fi
Phone: +358 50 5519288

Read full job advetisement here (PDF)

————————————————————————————————————————————————————–

Article: Well-organized sewage management advances comprehensive sustainability of boating and marinas

A new article from the Kotka Maritime Research Network recently came out in the international science journal Marine Pollution Bulletin. The article is based on data collected during the 30MILES project, that focused on sustainable development of the marina network in the Eastern Gulf of Finland.

While analyzing the answers of queries and interviews, the researchers noticed the aspects most frequently commented by boaters in connection to sustainability of marinas  were the waste management issues – especially those related to boat-sourced sewage management. Recreational boaters in the study area often seemed to face boat-sourced sewage management issues that the port actors were not aware of. A literature review indicated similar issues are faced by boaters in other parts of the world, too.

Since 2005, discharging boat-sourced sewage in the Finnish coastal areas has been banned by law. The contents of the boat-toilet should be stored in sewage holding tanks for later disposal at sewage pump-out stations. In Finland, the pump-out stations are usually located either in natural harbours or built marinas. In natural harbours, floating stations are maintained most often by an environmental association (Keep the Archipelago Tidy Association). Shore stations located in marinas are maintained by marina operators in accordance with the marina municipalities. Boat-sourced sewage is still often dumped in the sea, locally contributing to the eutrophication of the Baltic Sea. The article of the KMRC researchers explains the reasons and suggests improvements. (Photo: Keep the Archipelago Tidy Association, HL-Metal Oy / Erik Saanila)

The researchers conducted an actor-network theory -driven analysis to understand and describe the mechanisms through which boat-sourced sewage management plays a role in sustainable marina development of the study area. The article presents a comprehensive description of one socio-eco-technical system, in which the various identified actors and factors, in interaction with each other, can either advance or hinder the manifestation of sustainable port operation and recreational boating. Sewage pump-out stations installed in the marinas are recognized as core marina services, valued by boaters. At the same time, they serve as so-called governance artefacts, steering the boaters’ environmental behavior in marinas, but also at sea, which simultaneously affects the sustainability of both marina operation and boating.

The results of the article indicate paying special attention to waste management services in marinas is likely to put forward a positive sustainability loop. This virtuous circle produces synergies between objectives of environmental management, local well-being, and economic development. Adequate environmental management preserves the ecosystem services that are part of the tourism product and prevents them from turning into disservices that would likely make visitors to abandon the site and its surroundings in the long run. Waste management connects concerns of both visiting boaters and locals, enabling the first group an environmentally conscious and legal way of action, at the same time sustaining the good environmental state in the home locality of the latter group.

The article provides evidence-based ideas and recommendations for improving the boat-sourced sewage management, as well as the sustainable development of marinas in general.

 

Original article:

Renne Vantola, Emilia Luoma, Tuuli Parviainen and Annukka Lehikoinen (2021). Sustainability manifesting as a multi-material and -sited network effect: How boat-sourced sewage management facilities serve as governance artefacts advancing sustainability in nautical tourism. Marine Pollution Bulletin 173, Part B. (Open access link)

 

Written by: Annukka Lehikoinen

Doctoral dissertation on the use of AIS-data for vessel collision risk analysis

Mr. Lei Du defended his doctoral dissertation on 1 October 2021 at Aalto University, in the field of marine technology. The opponent was Associate Professor Rafał Szłapczyński from the Gdansk University of Technology, Poland. Assistant professor Osiris Valdez Banda – a member of the Kotka Maritime Research Centre’s management group – was the supervisor of the doctoral thesis.

The thesis, titled as Maritime Traffic Risk Analysis in the Northern Baltic Sea from AIS data, consists of five scientific articles and a summary section. It reviews and develops framework and methodology of maritime traffic risk analysis to support decision-making for the prevention of and response to accidents, particularly ship collisions.

The focus of the thesis is in advancing the latest methodology of utilizing non-accident critical events, in other words near misses, detected from AIS data, as the basis to risk assessments. AIS refers to Automatic Identification Systems tracking the ship movements, being commonly used by vessel traffic service (VTS) centres worldwide.

”Through this work, we can identify the waters where dangerous encounters happened frequently and provide evidence for the identified causes of serious ship encounters,” Mr. Du says.

He continues by telling the results can help developing preventive measures to reduce the ship collision probability, or to minimize the negative consequences of ship collisions by allocating more reponse resources to the most risky areas. The expected end-users of the results include the authorities responsible for maritime traffic planning and management, as well as pollution prevention and response agencies.

The thesis summary can be downloaded from the Aaltodoc publication archive.

 

Written by: Annukka Lehikoinen

Oil Spill Response in the Northern Baltic and Arctic Areas-Twitter conference 14.1.2021

Three EU funded Research projects, all developing countermeasures against oil pollution, will have the joint Twitter conference 14th January 2021, at 10:00 am – 2.00 pm (UCT+2).

ACBR (Arctic Coast Bioremediation) will show some of the latest results how to use biotechnology for comprehensive remediation of oil-contaminated marine coastal areas in the Arctic.

SIMREC (Simulators for improving Cross-Border Oil Spill Response in Extreme Conditions) will highlight effort s to use simulators as novel platforms for training and research to develop joint procedures for the cross the border co-operation in the Eastern part of the Gulf of Finland

OILSPILL (Enhancing oil spill response capability in the Baltic Sea Region) will focus on the oil spill response capability on the Baltic Sea region.

Join us in January: #BAOIL21

Programme

Potential Cargo Flows and Routing in Inland Waterways of Lake Saimaa and Volga-Balt area

The Saimaa Canal has been in operation for 164 years. Today, the largest cargo flows to Saimaa region come from Russia, which is the region’s largest trading partner. The next largest and important partners are the Netherlands, Estonia, Germany, and Latvia, which all have active traffic and trade in the Saimaa region. Cargo is exported even as far as to France and to the United Kingdom from Saimaa. There is no year-round operation in the Saimaa Canal, and therefore the freight figures are not comparable with seaports.

Russia’s inland waterway network is significant, and its south-eastern part in particular is important to Finland. 120 million tonnes of cargo passes through the Russian inland waterway system annually, and there are 131 inland ports in its inland waterway network. For comparison, the total volume of cargo in Finland is about 100 million tonnes. Within the framework of the INFUTURE project, Admiral Makarov State University of Maritime and Inland Shipping has conducted a study of inland waterway traffic and freight flows between Russia and Finland and based on the performed analysis possible potential has been identified.

Inland Waterway Fleet

The current fleet operating on inland waterways is very old, and there is a need for new vessels. The INFUTURE project has concentrated on this issue as well, and the new vessel types for the new Saimaa Canal are under planning. The demand for Volgo-DonMax vessels (max length 141.0 m; max width 16.98 m) is still high. Russian Marine Engineering Bureau is building dry-cargo river-sea going vessels. Total order book is 60 vessels, of which 27 have already been delivered, 22 are under construction, and the rest 11 are in reserve. Most of the delivered ones are modern river-sea going vessels. In addition, there are also two tug barges under construction. Unfortunately, these vessels are too big to navigate via Saimaa canal even after the extension of Saimaa Canal lock chambers.

Development of the Inland Waterway System

Another important issue is also the investment of about EUR 100 million made by the Finnish government for the extension of the lock chambers of the Saimaa Canal. This will allow larger vessels to pass through the Saimaa Canal with bigger cargo volumes. In Russia, there is also a need to develop the inland waterway system. Today the guaranteed depth is 3.6 m in the European side of the Russian Federation, but there are two parts where the depth is even shallower than 3.6 m. The Russian government is investing into inland waterway system to grant the depth of 3.6 m everywhere. There is a need to shift cargo from roads and railroads into inland waterways.

The Russian Federation Strategy for inland development is to modernise and expand their main waterway infrastructure by 2024:
• increase of the capacity of domestic seaports by a third
• increase of the throughput of inland waterways
• the development of the Northern Sea Route
• the development of professional education and training

New cargo flows and routes to Saimaa are of high importance for Russia, including action for shifting cargos from roads and railroads into river-sea going vessels. Inland ports development in both countries and their wider connection into trade will foster local development on multiple fronts: industrial, social, etc. Saimaa’s infrastructural development shall stimulate the replacement of old fleet with new vessels. The limitations of the navigation period on Saimaa and on the Volgo-Balt is also hindering the smooth waterway operations between Finland and Russia.

Harmonisation of Rules and Procedures

There are differences in the legislation of Finland (EU) and Russia on inland water transport and on customs and border procedures. These require some harmonisation in order to develop the passage efficiency via Saimaa Canal. According to the plans of the Russian Federation, the maritime checkpoint will be located exactly in the middle of the canal, and if we do not start a dialogue on the optimisation of customs and border control procedures in advance this may cause problems for shipping from the beginning of operation under the existing rules.

Cargo Volumes via Volgo-Balt, White sea-Onega, and Saimaa

The annual cargo to and from Saimaa is almost 1 million tonnes, and with domestic cargo altogether around 2 million tonnes/year. For comparison, almost 17 million tonnes of cargo is transported annually at Volgo-Balt. Nowadays the main cargo from Russia to Saimaa is timber: raw wood and wood chips. Fertilisers and chemicals as well as iron scrap, metal/iron pigs, and gravel could be potential cargo for this inland route. The most important regions for wood producers are Karelia, Vologda region, and Leningrad region. Neva Hagen shipping company is the Russian company that has been operating with Saimaa cargo for several years.

Pilot Voyage from Saimaa to Cherepovets

In the frames of the INFUTURE project we plan to carry a pilot voyage from Saimaa to Cherepovets with the company Meriaura. For Finnish partners, the idea behind this is to be able to estimate how it is to navigate with their own fleet in the Russian inland waterways. At the moment we are looking for a suitable vessel, and the VolgoBalt Administration has promised to help in defining the right size of the vessel for the pilot. UPM is willing to participate in the INFUTURE pilot project as a cargo provider. It would be a really good addition for the company, if vessels under the Finnish flag could enter the Russian inland waterways. Currently, wood is imported using Russian tonnage, and there is a need for more tonnage.

Request for Cargo Integrator

Within the framework of the INFUTURE project, a customer survey of Saimaa region stakeholders was conducted. In these discussions the environmental issues came up, and also the role of SMEs in shared cargo transport was underlined. The inland waterways could also be used in some project transports. Reliable cargo integrators with experience in a wide range of cargo and cargo groups in Lake Saimaa region are needed and they could develop new business models to serve for example SME. Currently, there is no container traffic in Saimaa, and very little in Russian rivers. European ports compete for the efficiency of transport chains and how to ensure logistics and make the whole chain competitive. Saimaa’s new dimensions and new vessels would also enable container transport. This possibility should be studied more, and there already is a particular interest in special containers.

A cost-effective, safe, and fast transportation route interests the stakeholders.

XAMK is preparing an analytical simulation model that can be used for simulating navigation in the Saimaa on larger ships in different conditions. At the same time, the utilisation of smart devices in navigation can be simulated. Calculations can be made of how long the journey would take by visualising different situations and repeating them. By analysing the results, new businesses can be developed. Within the framework of the project, there has also been discussion on a “transshipment hub” to serve the waterway traffic between Finland and Russia. The digital services play a key role here, with a possibility to assemble complete cargos, book ships and cargo space, get real-time information on fairways and ports, see descriptions of transport chains and alternative routes – and get clear offers on competitiveness of waterways.

New Business Models

New business models and a new attitude towards inland waterway transport are needed. Could there be some kind of incentives to support the companies in shifting their cargo into inland waterways and to develop the whole supply chain environmentally friendly? Lappeenranta, the port of Mustola, is the largest port in the Saimaa region, and has served as a transit port over the years. In addition to the Mustola logistics center, Lappeenranta has a passenger port and a marina, as well as an airport. Mustola has 7 piers and the location is ideal; 10 km from the center and 15 km from the border. Mustola is also significant as a storage area. The Saimaa Canal is close by and has good rail and road connections.

How to further develop Lappeenranta’s Mustola multimodal logistics centre, and specifically how to support the better utilisation of water transport? How to get industry and trade involved? How to manage the development of the entire transport chain and new service concepts, as well as marketing cooperation and information systems? Could the “Port of Saimaa” be the answer to all this?
The idea of the “Port of Saimaa” is to form a network of active cargo ports in the Saimaa region; Lappeenranta, Joensuu, Kuopio, Savonlinna, Imatra, and Varkaus. The “Port of Saimaa” would be presented to the clients and in the market as one big cargo port. If there is a commercial interest, it will be possible to solve most of the organisational and legal problems, including attracting new cargo, and issues on shifting cargo from road and rails into waterways. Continued dialogue and collaborative meetings such as round tables are needed between the stakeholders and administrative authorities.

Author:
Heli Koukkula-Texeira, Finnish Waterway Association

Round Table speakers:
Pekka Koskinen, Partner, Brave Logistics Oy
Anatoly Burkov, Admiral Makarov State University for Maritime and Inland Shipping
Esa Korhonen, UPM Metsä
Toomas Lybeck, South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences
Hannu Lappalainen, Lappeenrannan Satama
Maksim A. Nevezhin, Head of FGU Saimaa Canal
Andrei L. Yushchenko, Marine Freight Bureau
Anton A. Svechkarev, Neva-Hagen
Dmitry S. Neslukhov, Neva-Hagen

The Russian RT discussion was held on 22.10.2020 and the Finnish on 26.10.2020

Text originally published in https://www.vesitiet.org/post/potential-cargo-flows-and-routing