📋 Tender Overview
Programme
Connecting Europe Facility (CEF)
Objective
The icebreaking service in northern Baltic Sea is an important part of the maritime infrastructure and is a prerequisite for sea transport during wintertime. Icebreaking and winter navigation is also a key priority in the Policy Area Safe of the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region.
WINMOS III is a part of a Global Project that aims at ensuring year-round maritime transport from and to harbours in EU’s northernmost waters where during wintertime large parts of the sea surface is covered by ice. This is done in ongoing co-operation between the neighbouring nations of Sweden, Finland, and Estonia, by continuously developing the winter navigation system and safeguarding the required icebreaking resources for future needs. These countries have long history of cooperation when it comes to winter shipping and icebreaking and have several political agreements in place, notably a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on deepened cooperation that was signed by the three countries in 2015. The icebreakers of Sweden and Finland are operated as one common fleet.
The main objective of WINMOS III is in line with the Global project, as it aims to ensure sustainable, functional, and efficient cross-border maritime transport all-year-around and mitigate the barrier caused by the ice during winter in the Baltic Sea. The project will ensure and improve the functionality of the winter navigation system.
WINMOS III will achieve its main objective by the following specific objectives:
• Building of an A-class icebreaker to replace an old, existing icebreaker in Sweden to meet the future needs of icebreaking capacity arising from the changed transport conditions of today and tomorrow (larger vessels with relatively less engine power), environmental performance, and defence capacity. The icebreaker will operate mainly in the Bay of Bothnia.
• Investigating the need for a smaller icebreaker in partner countries, for potential replacement of the outgoing icebreakers, by doing a design study and concept development for a smaller B-class icebreaker.
• Further development of the joint Swedish and Finnish icebreaking management system, IBNet, to enhance redundancy and security.
• Development of simulation models for ice conditions and icebreakers, as well as new simulator bridges for training to maintain unique skills of the icebreaker navigators.
• Seeking out an environmental optimum with merchant vessel ice performance and icebreaker fleet size, to match future needs of the winter navigation system.
WINMOS III is implemented jointly by the icebreaking authorities from Sweden, Finland, and Estonia. Two partners are beneficiaries of the project, i.e., the Swedish Maritime Administration (SMA) who is also the project’s coordinator, and the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency (FTIA). The Estonian Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communication (EMEAC) participates as an associated pa
