LARGER SHIPS AND MORE CRUISE PASSENGERS TO MALMÖ

Copenhagen Malmö Port, CMP, has been given the go-ahead by the Swedish Maritime Administration to receive larger cruise ships in Malmö. The decision represents a major boost for cruise tourism in Malmö. Over 10,000 passengers are already booked for the 2018 cruise season.

A constraint on cruise ships visiting Malmö has been that the ships are not permitted to exceed a length of 240m. CMP has therefore had extensive simulations carried out in order to ascertain whether it is possible to receive larger ships and thus more cruise passengers to Malmö. The tests were conducted during the autumn with very positive results.

“The fact that CMP has been given the go-ahead from the Swedish Maritime Administration to receive ships of up to 300 metres creates entirely new conditions for the cruise operation here in Malmö. It is an important decision both for us and for the city of Malmö, as larger ships bring with them more people. We already have ten arrivals booked for the 2018 cruise season, which represents over ten thousand passengers”, says Arnt Møller Pedersen, Head of Cruise Traffic at Copenhagen Malmö Port AB.

The simulations were conducted over a number of days in Göteborg with different types of ship, which had to undergo different kinds of weather conditions and wind forces.

A total of 18 dockings were performed with the conditions to be found in Frihamnen in Malmö. It must be possible to manoeuvre the ships that visit Malmö at a speed of three knots and with a side wind of 10 m/s without the assistance of pilot boats. However, the wind restriction set for the ships’ maiden visits is 8 m/s.