Key locks for future shipping to ports in Mälaren region

At present, intensive efforts are being made to create conditions for better navigation in our region. This initiative is in line with Port of Södertälje’s work by turning to shipping in order to reduce freight transport's negative environmental impact.

As both the Lake Mälaren region and Stockholm are fast expanding, there are increasing demands for both safer and environmentally-friendly freight transport options.

Port of Södertälje has a unique geographical location, with access to waterways through Lake Malaren to the ports of Västerås and Norrköping, and to Stockholm itself. Via locks in Stockholm and Södertälje, Lake Mälaren becomes connected to Saltsjön. Since 2015, the Maritime Administration has implemented the environmental ’Mälaren project’.

- The purpose of the Mälaren project is to improve maritime safety and accessibility in public waterways through the Södertälje Canal and Lake Mälaren, says Nina Brundin, communications spokesperson for the Mälaren project. An important part is to broaden and lengthen the Sodertalje lock and make improvements to the channel.

These initiatives are important in allowing more transports to be shifted from road and rail to shipping. By reconstructing the Södertälje lock, larger and longer vessels will be able to use it, thus relieving the already overstretched road network of the greater Stockholm region. Thanks to the Port of Södertälje’s geographical location, much of land transports will be moved to the waterways and reloaded to onto barges for further transport.

- We have a smaller impact on the environment while at the same time ensuring that the safety of the transportation system increases. A larger lock in Södertälje means we can accommodate modern tonnage shipping that is constructed with far higher environmental standards. At the same time shipping’s own environmental impact is minimized and transport costs are reduced as fewer vessels can transport larger amounts of cargo, concludes Nina Brundin.

At the same time intensive work is underway to rebuild the lock in capital, Stockholm. However, it will retain the same capacity as before, which means that the Södertälje lock is still the only entrance point for larger ships into Lake Mälaren. The Mälaren project is set to be completed in 2019 and the reconstruction of the Stockholm lock by 2023.