Icebreaking season ended on 30th May
Thu Jun 02 15:02:00 2022
The Icebreaking season 2021–2022 ended on the 30th of May, as icebreaker Otso returned to the icebreaker base in Helsinki.
The icebreaking season was exceptionally long, the first icebreaker began the season on 4th of December. Almost every icebreaker was active, and merchant vessels’ safe arrival at harbours was ensured without difficulty.
The ice winter was mild measured in ice extent, but harsh conditions were also experienced, especially in the Bay of Bothnia. In the Bay of Bothnia, the level ice areas was generally rather thick reaching up to over 90 cm off the port of Kemi. Icebreaker assistance was also provided in the Gulf of Finland.
This season, Arctia’s icebreakers operated for a total of 786 operating days. There were a total of 2147 assisted ship voyages, 218 of which included towing . The total number of miles navigated over the course of the icebreaking season was 80429.
Arctia would like to extend a warm thanks for the past icebreaking season to the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency, the Finnish Meteorological Institute, Traficom, Fintraffic’s VTS centers, Finnpilot’s pilots, the Swedish Maritime Administration and the Swedish icebreakers as well as all merchant ships, shipping companies, shipbrokers and ports assisted by Arctia’s icebreakers as well as Arctia’s other stakeholders.