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Sörnäinen Harbour
Former harbour in Helsinki, Finland / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sörnäinen Harbour (Finnish: Sörnäisten satama, Swedish: Sörnäs hamn) was for nearly one and a half centuries a major harbour and freight terminal in the Port of Helsinki, located in the Sörnäinen district on the eastern shore of the Helsinki city centre area.[2]
Sörnäinen Harbour | |
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![]() Aerial view of Sörnäinen Harbour in 1994, looking north, with the Hanasaari Power Plant seen on the left | |
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Native name | Sörnäisten satama – Sörnäs hamn |
Location | |
Country | Finland |
Location | Sörnäinen, Helsinki |
Coordinates | 60.1795°N 24.9752°E / 60.1795; 24.9752 |
Details | |
Opened | 1863 |
Closed | 2008 |
Operated by | Port of Helsinki |
Owned by | City of Helsinki |
Type of harbour | Coastal natural |
Draft depth | 9.6 metres (31 ft)[1] |
It was opened in 1863 to serve mainly the country's timber export trade, in 1889 an oil import terminal was added, and more recently containerised cargo and some passenger traffic.[2][3] The harbour was finally closed down after 145 years of operation in November 2008, when the new Vuosaari Harbour was opened in the eastern suburb, and the facilities moved there.[3][4] The only remaining functions relate to the adjacent Hanasaari Power Plant, which is itself being gradually decommissioned.[2]
The port facilities were connected to the rail network at Pasila station via a branch line called Sörnäinen harbour rail, which originally ran through Vallila, but which in 1965 was re-routed around the inner city area via Kumpula.[5]
Since its closure, the harbour area has been redeveloped for residential, retail and leisure use, as part of the Kalasatama development.[2]
The harbour was also commonly referred to as 'Sompasaari Harbour', after a small island which originally was located immediately to its south, but which the harbour development had subsumed under reclaimed land.[3]