en.Wedoany.com Report on Mar 25th, Sustained growth in rail freight between northern Sweden and the Port of Gothenburg, primarily driven by the rail terminals in Haparanda and Piteå in the northernmost Norrbotten region, has made 2025 the best year on record for container transport between the port and these northern inland terminals.
Johan Ehn, Senior Market Development Manager at the Port of Gothenburg, stated: "This is a development that almost no one dared to expect a few years ago. In just the last five years, we have seen the number of containers from northern Sweden double. This clearly demonstrates the growing importance of the region as a driver for Sweden's export industry."
In 2025, these two rail terminals together handled 13,412 TEU, a 16% increase compared to the previous year. The rail terminal in Piteå, owned by Stenvalls Trä, was initially built to meet the company's own transport needs, primarily for sawn and planed timber products. As more companies in the industry began using the terminal, the cargo mix has diversified, contributing to the increase in throughput.
Roger Bergman, Market Manager at Stenvalls Trä, noted: "We and our customers need to transport products to global export markets quickly and efficiently while reducing climate impact. Gothenburg is the largest port in the Nordic region with an extensive shipping network and efficient rail-to-ship transshipment. Establishing a high-frequency rail connection to the port has proven crucial for our region." He emphasized that reliability and continuity are key to the success of the rail solution, especially in winter when ice conditions can limit vessel access to ports in the northern Baltic Sea, prompting more companies to turn to rail transport.
Bergman added: "This has led to more cargo shifting to the rail shuttle operated by TFK Logistics. We are able to provide a reliable alternative in challenging situations with high delivery precision. The trains run consistently—week after week, regardless of the season." When trains arrive in Gothenburg, containers are directly transferred to the port's container terminal operated by APM Terminals, then loaded onto ocean-going vessels for global distribution, while the trains are reloaded with import goods for the return trip to northern Sweden.
A total of 19 container trains operate weekly between northern Sweden and the Port of Gothenburg, connecting multiple inland terminals with the port. These services are part of Railport Scandinavia, the Port of Gothenburg's rail network connecting approximately 30 inland terminals across Sweden. In 2025, over 72,000 TEU were transported via these northern rail connections, highlighting the critical role of rail freight in the port's container transport.
