Shipping route to Kotka reconsidered

The northeast Estonian Sillamae and Kunda ports are interested in restoring ship connection with the southeast Finnish town of Kotka, hoping that it would have a positive effect on the development of both regions, reports Public Broadcasting. There was a ship connection between Sillamae and Kotka in the previous decade, and now restoring it is again on the agenda.

Besides the Helsinki-Tallinn ship connection, the eastern shipping route is needed by both tourists and cargo transporters.

While the ship could sail to Kotka directly from Kunda, from Sillamae it would have to sail in Estonian coastal waters till almost Kunda, and then from west of the Daughter Islands, to Kotka though ship traffic would be around two hours longer.

Sillamae port marketing director Andrei Birov says that the problem is solvable. "If you have good relations with your partners in the European Union and Russia, you can always solve these issues," said Birov.

The director thinks that the ship could start sailing at once, as only the operator would have to be found.

Kunda port director Aleksander Nikolajev says that both Sillamae-Kotka and Kunda-Kotka routes have their own ideas and perspectives. "We see our possibilities in focusing on movement of cargo and developing the direct connection. Colleagues from Sillamae focus more on passenger transport and tourism," he said.