Volume of goods transported in domestic waterborne traffic decreased by 16 per cent in 2024

Volume of goods transport decreased further

In 2024, goods transport in domestic waterborne traffic totalled 4.7 million tonnes. In 2023, the transport volumes made a downturn and decreased further by 16 per cent in 2024. Ninety per cent of the total volume of transport was carried by vessels. Timber floating covered the remaining ten per cent of transport.

The volume of shipborne transport was 4.2 million tonnes and the volume transported decreased by 16 per cent compared to 2023. The decrease in transport is mainly explained by a 54 per cent drop in the transport of hard coal and coke. The transport of oil products covered 49 per cent of the transport in domestic waterborne traffic. Timber was transported second most, its share of shipborne transport was 25 per cent. The share of hard coal and coke in transport was six per cent.

The transport performance of domestic waterborne traffic was 2.3 billion tonne-kilometres and it went down by 0.4 billion tonne-kilometres from the year before. Ninety-four per cent of the transport performance came from shipborne traffic and 90 per cent of the transport performance in shipborne traffic occurred in coastal areas. Eighty-one per cent of the total volume of shipborne transport was transported in coastal areas. The transport is coastal transport if the port of departure or destination is situated on the coast.

Volume of shipborne goods transport in domestic waterborne traffic by type of goods in 2021 to 2024

Content is being loaded

Transport volume of timber decreased by 17 per cent

In 2024, timber was transported both by floating and in vessels in domestic waterborne traffic. A total of 1.5 million tonnes of timber were transported. A total of 0.5 million tonnes were floated and 1.0 million tonnes were transported in vessels. In total, transport of timber decreased by 17 per cent compared to 2023. The volume of timber transported by floating decreased by 15 per cent and that of timber transported in vessels by 19 per cent. In 2024, timber was floated only in the Vuoksi river basin.

Goods transport between Åland and Mainland Finland declined somewhat

A total of 219,474 tonnes of goods were transported between Mainland Finland and Åland in 2024. A total of 108,775 tonnes of goods were imported to Åland and 110,699 tonnes of goods were exported from there. In total, goods transport between Mainland Finland and Åland went down by five per cent compared to 2023. Transport of general cargo decreased most, by 14 per cent. General cargo, 81,149 tonnes, and oil products, 20,719 tonnes, were imported most to Åland. Most exports from Åland consisted of timber, 63,404 tonnes, and general cargo, 44,499 tonnes.

No goods were transported through the Saimaa Canal

Russia's attack on Ukraine in practice stopped goods transport through the Saimaa Canal in the early part of 2022. In 2024, no goods at all were transported through the Saimaa Canal.