Finnlines has been selected as one of the 15 Finnish National Champions to represent Finland in the 2015/16 European Business Awards, which exists to recognise and reward excellence, best practice and innovation in companies across Europe. Finnlines will compete in the “Environmental & Corporate Sustainability” category.

Finnlines is a leading shipping operator of RoRo and passenger services in the Baltic Sea and in the North Sea. Despite years of economic recession, Finnlines has upgraded its fleet and expanded its services .The company is in the process of completing an extensive Environmental Technology Investment Programme, which amounts to EUR 100 million.

Pollution abatement measures

To comply with stringent environmental regulations, Finnlines has installed exhaust gas scrubbers on the majority of its ships and the remainder of the fleet will be fitted with scrubbers in 2016. Installation of propellers and rudders of new design has improved energy efficiency. Other measures to reduce air emissions have consisted of optimisation of schedules and slow steaming. Furthermore, two roro-passenger ships have been treated with silicone paint, which is expected decrease fuel consumption by nearly 10%.

Judging process to continue in 2016

The next phase in the Awards is to submit a video presenting company achievements. The video will also be available for a public vote. A judging panel will identify the finalists to be awarded Ruban d’Honneur status in February 2016. The final Category Winners will be announced in June 2016.

In 2014, some 24000 organisations from 33 countries entered this high-profile competition.