Ferry operator Finnlines recently announced the 'lengthening' of one of their vessels. But how do you really go about making a ferry longer?

The M/S Finnwave has been lengthened by 30 metres. To do this, 1600 tonnes of additional steel has been welded into the middle of the ship, as well as new pipes, cables, decks and bulkheads. In addition, long, demanding tests of the ship's systems have been required.

The newly lengthened vessel will provide 4,213 additional lane metres for freight vehicles from the port of Turku. This equates to around 1 kilometre of extra trucks, a 30% increase in capacity and a considerable reduction in fuel consumption per vehicle.

"Finnlines has continued to invest in its fleet to become a more environmentally sound and a more sustainable shipping company. In response to growing demand, we are expanding our fleet capacity through this lengthening programme. This way we can serve our customers better and grow together with them"

says Tom Pippingsköld, CFO of Finnlines.

The lengthening of existing ships is part of Finnlines' investment programme to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions.

Finnlines are lengthening four of their Breeze series ro-ro vessels, with options for two more ships. The whole lengthening programme will be completed by May 2018.