BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 2. Maersk has
launched a new block train service connecting Haparanda, on the
Swedish-Finnish border, with APM Terminals Gothenburg, offering
businesses in northern Sweden and Finland an alternative route to
international shipping networks, the company said on November
2.


The service is designed to improve transport connectivity for
industries across the northern Nordic region, particularly steel,
forestry, pulp and paper producers, by reducing transit times and
providing year-round access to maritime freight services.


According to Maersk, the new rail connection could reduce total
transit time for cargo travelling from Oulu, Finland, to Asia by
eight days compared with traditional routes. The first train is
scheduled to operate on November 5, with the service initially
offering two weekly round trips between APM Terminals Gothenburg
and Haparanda. Maersk plans to increase the frequency to four and
subsequently six round trips per week.


The rail connection is also expected to reduce exposure to
disruptions caused by winter conditions in the northern Baltic
Sea.


"Another benefit specially in winter: customers are no longer
exposed to ice-related delays in the Northern Baltic Sea. The rail
offering also bypasses port-related vessel and crane bottlenecks,
removing key sources of uncertainty from the transport chain," the
company added.







The long-distance leg of the route will use electric rail, while
the final delivery to customers can be handled by either truck or
rail, depending on requirements.


Through APM Terminals Gothenburg, the service will connect with
international shipping routes, including Maersk's Gemini East-West
Ocean Network. Three mainliner services calling at the Port of
Gothenburg provide onward connections to global markets, including
direct links to Asia.


The launch comes amid growing trade activity in both Finland and
Sweden. Preliminary figures from Finnish Customs show that the
value of Finland's goods exports increased by 11.5% year-on-year in
January-August 2026, while export volumes rose by 3.3%. The value
of imports grew by 16.6% over the same period.


In August alone, Finnish goods exports increased by 22% in value
and 9.5% in volume compared with the same month of 2025. Sweden
also recorded growth in merchandise trade. According to Statistics
Sweden, the value of Swedish goods exports rose by 4% in
January-August 2026 compared with the corresponding period of 2025,
while imports increased by 8%.