DLA Piper acted for Oma Savings Bank and LocalTapiola in connection with Meriaura's expansion of low carbon technologies in shipping

DLA Piper has advised senior financiers Oma Savings Bank and LocalTapiola on a transaction in which Meriaura Ltd acquired two Ecotrader cargo vessels to be delivered by the Dutch shipyard Royal Bodewes. The vessels will be built in Hoogezand, the Netherlands, and will be delivered in January and December 2026. Meriaura Ltd specializes in sea transportation of industrial products and raw materials as well as demanding special cargo transportation. Meriaura's vessels operate contract and cargo services mainly in the Baltic Sea and the North Sea.

The ordered Ecotraders are 105 metre long, 1A ice class vessels of 6750 dwt, designed to achieve the lowest possible emission levels. The Ecotraders will be able to run on biofuel produced from recycled raw materials by Meriaura's subsidiary VG-Ecofuel. The investment is a continuation of Meriaura's series of investments in energy efficient tonnage using bio-oil. Maritime transport plays a key role in logistics in Finland and the drive towards carbon neutrality contributes to the pressure of the industry to renew and adopt new technologies. The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has set a target of carbon-neutral shipping by 2050.  Meriaura's climate strategy aims to achieve carbon neutrality earlier, by the 2030s.

The investment is financed by Oma Savings Bank and LocalTapiola as senior lenders and the Finnish Climate Fund as junior lender. Oma Savings Bank Plc is the fastest growing bank in the Nordic countries and Finland’s most profitable bank with 45 branches, over 200 000 customers and ca. 500 staff. LocalTapiola is a Finnish financial group with ca. 3 800 staff. The Finnish Climate Fund is a Finnish state-owned special-assignment company. Its operations focus on combating climate change, boosting low-carbon industry and promoting digitalisation.

The DLA Piper advisory team included Hans Sundblad, Mikko Luukkonen, Iiris Tuohimaa, Elise Bergman, and Satu Saarikoski.

This news can be read in Finnish here.