By+ Photo : Marek Grzybowski ( from : Poland )

On Saturday (September 3), the ceremony of naming the new ferry directed to the Gdynia-Karlskrona service took place. The name of the ferry Stena Estelle was given by the godmother of the ship, Katarzyna Gruszecka-Spychała, vice-president of Gdynia.

– „Sail on the Baltic, connecting Gdynia with Karlskrona, Poland with Sweden. Be a joy for the crew and passengers on every cruise. I give you the name Stena Estelle” – said Vice President Katarzyna Gruszecka–Spychała and smashed a bottle of champagne against the starboard side of the ship.

– Stena Estelle is E-Flexer type ferry, one of the largest ferries in the Baltic Sea in regular sailing. It is 240 meters long, offers space for 1,200 people and can accommodate up to 200 trucks on 3,600 meters of car decks –  said Marek Kiersnowski, managing director of Stena Line Polska.

The ferry can use shore power in the port. This reduces exhaust emissions. Connection to the electricity grid will enable conversion to a hybrid battery system in the future. The main propulsion engine of the ferry can run on methanol or other ecological fuel.

– The Baltic Sea is an economic area that continues to grow dynamically. Customer demand grows daily. We are fortunate enough to be able to meet this demand with a modern and efficient fleet. We are delighted to be able to put into operation the beautiful new Stena Estelle vessel, says Niclas Mårtensson, Managing Director of Stena Line.

The twin ferry Stena Ebba will enter the line by the end of this year. Stena Line has been continuously developing the Gdynia-Karlskrona ferry connection for over 25 years. During this time, Stena Line ferries transported 11 million people, nearly 2 million passenger cars and over 2 million freight units between Poland and Sweden. Almost every year there were records for the transport of trucks and passengers. New ferries are being introduced to ensure the further dynamic development of the Gdynia-Karlskrona sea motorway.

– Gdynia – Karlskrona is an important economic and communication link on the Trans-European Baltic-Adriatic Corridor route – emphasized Minister Marcin Horała, secretary of state at the Ministry of Funds and Regional Policies.

– This year we are celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Port of Gdynia’s operation on the international market. Stena Line made the most modern vessel sail from Gdynia to Karlskrona. We are very happy that the luxury and modern ferry will serve the customers of our port – emphasizes Jacek Sadaj, President of the Port of Gdynia.

The Gdynia-Karlskrona ferry connection is primarily a connection between the inhabitants of Poland and Sweden, it is the development of business and human contacts – said Magdalena Pramfelt, Honorary Consul General of Sweden in Gdańsk.

Stena Estelle entered the Gdynia-Karlskrona line with the first sea cruise on Sunday, September 4, 2022 at 21.00.

Stena Estelle:

• Built: 2022
• Length: 240 m
• Draft: 6.4 m
• Width: 28 m
• Freight capacity: 3600 m
• Number of passengers: 1,200 people
• Number of cabins: 263

Stena Line is one of the world’s largest ferry companies with over 25,000 yearly sailings. employ over 5,100 employees of close to 40 nationalities across Europe. With  headquarters located in Göteborg, Sweden, copany has a route-based organisation in 6 business regions. It operates on 18 routes connecting 10 countries, and 38 ferries. Stana Line has an annual turnover of SEK 10B.