Port of Kokkola a strong candidate for the TEN-T core network

The port of Kokkola is becoming part of the core network in the Europe-wide TEN-T transport network. In April , the transport committee of the European Parliament discussed the position of ports in the transport network. The matter is still progressing to tripartite negotiations between the EU Commission, the Council of Member States and the Parliament.

Kokkola City’s Development Director Jonne Sandberg was happy to receive the news about the decision by the EU Parliament’s transport committee to upgrade the port of Kokkola from the comprehensive network to the core network.

– As the owner’s representative, I am naturally very satisfied that the messages about the importance of the port of Kokkola have been heeded and recognized in the European Union. Core network status makes the port of Kokkola an even more credible actor, improves financing opportunities and also tells about the standards that the port meets, Jonne Sandberg states and thanks MEP Elsi Katainen (Renew Europe Group) for her strong advocacy work.

According to Sandberg, as a port in the core network, Kokkola plays a very important role in terms of security of supply in the changed geopolitical situation. In addition, access to the core network, when realized, will strengthen the position of the port of

Kokkola as the number one export port in Northern Finland.

– As a part of the core network, the port of Kokkola is also an even stronger player as a promoter of the green transition. Considerable international green transition investments have been and will continue to be concentrated in Kokkola. When negotiating these, among the first questions that come up are the port and its capabilities, Jonne Sandberg recalls.

THE TEN-T NETWORK COMBINES Europe’s railways, inland waterways, roads, sea and air connections into an extensive transport network consisting of a comprehensive network and a core network. According to Elsi Katainen, member countries are entitled to apply for EU funding from the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) for their ports that are part of the TEN-T network, in addition to which the ports have certain infrastructure-related obligations.

– After the transport committee, the legislation will still be discussed in tripartite negotiations. In the parliament, we were able to negotiate the best possible outcome of the matter, because the parliament now has a strong position on the inclusion of the port of Kokkola in the core network. In the negotiations, the Council must also join those in favour. We still have a way to go before the process is complete, Elsi Katainen commented on the matter at the end of May.