Stena Line and the Gothenburg Port Authority have agreed to work together to enable the 2027 relocation of Stena’s terminals and operations from the city centre to Arendal.
The new location will give Stena Line room to grow and will also help implement future initiatives to meet its goal of completely fossil-free operations in 2050. At the same time, it will provide opportunities to move heavy traffic out of the city centre and benefit Gothenburg’s city development plans.
Stena Line and the Gothenburg Port Authority have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to work actively together to find a new location for the ferry company’s terminals and operations in the outer port area of Arendal.
The ferry company’s ambition is to strengthen Gothenburg as a sustainable Nordic freight hub, as well as promote sustainable shipping. It also goes hand in hand with the city’s plans to develop a denser mixed-use city along the river banks, the port said.
Stena plans to be able to enter into a 25-year lease agreement in Arendal no later than 1st January, 2027.
“We want to be a driving force in the development of sustainable shipping and grow together with Gothenburg. We are positively entering into discussions about a new location for our port and our terminals because we believe that it can give us as well as the industry the opportunity to accelerate change,” said Niclas Mårtensson, Stena Line CEO.
The agreement to operate on the sites where the Stena Line terminals are currently located had previously been extended to 2035. However, they took into account an earlier relocation if this would be required by urban development and this has now come to fruition, due to the city’s decision to build the Lindholmen-connection tunnel in the Göta Älv river.
“Since the port has secured land and agreements with surrounding operations, we now have a suitable physical location and a basic layout.
“With this, there are conditions enabling a move forward with a replacement location that benefits Stena Line’s operations. This is in parallel with the port’s ambition to consolidate port operations in the outer port areas, while giving the city access to central areas for urban development,” said Elvir Dzanic, Gothenburg Port Authority CEO.
