Rotterdam and Oslo sign MoU for green corridor

The corridor will be served by Samskip’s next-generation zero-emission SeaShuttle vessels.

Under the partnerships, the two European port majors will work on accelerating green transition in shortsea shipping, to support the debut of Samskip’s green hydrogen-fuelled container ships.

“Samskip celebrates both the cooperative endeavours of this partnership, as well as this momentous occasion and the positive results that come from the green transition efforts,” Samskip Holding CEO Kari-Pekka Laaksonen, said.

“This signing brings us one step closer toward the exciting launch of SeaShuttle, the zero-emission hydrogen vessels that will be utilised in this project, and we look forward to continuing to nurture the relationship we have built between Rotterdam and Oslo.”

Both cities have invested in decarbonisation initiatives as part of their commitments to the advancement of the maritime industry. As part of the largest multimodal network in Europe, Samskip has major terminals in both cities.

“This is a perfect example of different companies and entities pulling together to accelerate greener logistics to help us achieve our ambitious decarbonisation targets for the upcoming years,” said Samskip Director, Business Development Magnús Salberg Óskarsson.

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Two Samskip zero-emission SeaShuttles will be utilised to service the new green corridor. The 135 metre-ships are being built by Cochin Shipyard and are due for delivery in the third and fourth quarters of 2025.

They will be among the first zero-emission short-sea container vessels in the world to use green hydrogen as fuel. The ships will operate weekly loops between Rotterdam and ports in the Oslofjord region establishing true end-to-end corridor services.

Samskip’s vessels will be powered by a 3.2 MW hydrogen fuel cell each, with diesel generators installed for backup. Each vessel is expected to cut around 25,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year when powered by fuel cells and by using green shore power at the port of call.