The governments of Finland and Norway have agreed to proceed with plans for a new railway line from Rovaniemi in northern Finland to the Norwegian port city of Kirkenes on the Barents Sea.

The project is estimated to cost approximately 2.9 billion euros and could be completed in twelve years, according to a feasibility study produced by the Finnish Transport Agency and Norway's railway authority.

The aim is to develop new trade routes and the business climate in the region.

”A rail link between Finland and Northern Norway could bring great opportunities for growth and development,” says Norwegian Minister of Transport and Communications Ketil Solvik-Olsen.

He adds that the Norwegian government will contribute to the Finnish working group that is now being set up to continue with the project.

In total, it's about almost 50 miles of new railway to Kirkenes, which has an ice-free transport harbour 1.5 miles from Norway's border with Russia.

Source: TT