The Oslo Port expects an increase of 20 percent in cruise tourists in 2019. Growth will be during the same year as Oslo is Europe’s environmental capital.
“Oslo will again be in the “Elite Division” of Norwegian cruise ship destinations, which we will achieve through a long-term and targeted cooperation, among other things, with Visit Oslo,” says Oslo’s Harbor Director Ingvar M. Mathisen to Dagens Næringsliv.
According to Mathisen, Oslo Harbor has received bookings of cruise ships with a total of 240,000 passengers for 2019. This is a 20 percent increase compared with this year.
“The following year we have already received bookings of 200,000 passengers, and based on previous years, we can expect further bookings this year. A careful estimate for 2020 is therefore 275,000 passengers, says Mathisen.
Emissions of CO2 from the international cruise industry account for about 3 percent of Norway’s annual emissions from domestic transport. The increase in the number of cruise tourists to Oslo comes after several years of decline, and next year the capital of Norway is also Europe’s environmental capital.
Oslo was awarded the status on the basis of, among other things, the city’s climate policy, air quality and initiative for green innovation. However, the City Council does not wish to introduce any ban on the polluting cruise ships.
– “Prohibition is not a current issue now. We will put in place land flow, which will reduce emissions drastically and reduce environmental impact. If time indicates that it is not enough to meet the climate policy we are committed to, we must of course look at new measures,” says Deputy Chairman Pål Thygesen of Oslo MDG to Aftenposten.
© NTB scanpix / #Norway Today
