On 13 September 2023, Finnsirius, the first of Finnlines’ two freight-passenger Superstar vessels, was named in Naantali. Tiina Ahola, representing the Ahola Group, acted as the godmother. The naming ceremony celebrated Finnlines’ and Ahola Group’s long-standing co-operation and commitment since both have served Finnish trade and industry as main carriers, according to the company's release.
The new ro-pax vessel Finnsirius, part of Finnlines EUR 500-million Green Investment Programme, was named at a festive ceremony in Naantali on 13 September 2023. Following the tradition at maritime namings, ship’s godmother Tiina Ahola broke a bottle of champagne against the bow, wishing the ship, its crew and passengers good fortune and fair winds.
Since over 75 years, Finnlines has been the major carrier of imports and exports in Finland, and thus also a pillar supporting the Finnish industry. The choice of Tiina Ahola as Finnsirius’ godmother celebrates the long-standing cooperation between Finnlines and the Ahola Group, together upholding a large part of the Finnish trade.
Finnlines Green Investment Programme comprises both ro-pax and ro-ro vessels. Three new hybrid ro-ro vessels started operating in summer 2022 and Finnsirius is the first of two Superstar ro-pax vessels that are the largest in the Finnlines fleet, with a cargo capacity of 5,200 lane metres and passenger capacity of 1,100. The second vessel, Finncanopus, is expected to be delivered by the end of 2023.
“Finnsirius is Finnlines’ new eco-efficient flagship, designed specifically for the fast-paced freight transport route between Finland and Sweden. At the same time, Finnsirius offers upgraded services and more travel comfort than the previous generation of ro-pax vessels. Freight is Finnlines’ core business, but it is a genuine pleasure to introduce our new service concept to our passengers,” says Antonio Raimo, Line Manager at Finnlines.
Finnsirius will enter Finnlines’ Finland–Sweden (Naantali–Långnäs–Kapellskär) line and the maiden voyage sets off from Naantali on 15 September 2023. The sister vessel, Finncanopus, is expected to join Finnsirius on the same route next year when a smaller ro-pax, Finnswan, will transfer to another Finnlines service.
Finnlines is a shipping operator of freight and passenger services in the Baltic Sea, the North Sea and the Bay of Biscay. The company is a part of the Grimaldi Group, one of the world’s largest operators of ro-ro vessels and the largest operator of the Motorways of the Sea in Europe for both passengers and freight. This affiliation enables Finnlines to offer liner services to and from several destinations in the Mediterranean, West Africa, Atlantic coast of both North and South America as well as Asia and Australia.