The BPC2026 officially opened today in Turku, Finland, bringing together maritime leaders, port authorities, and industry experts for two days of high-level discussion. Under the guiding theme “One Large Green Shipping Corridor,” the opening sessions tackled core industry transformations focusing on ports in transition, green corridor strategies, biodiversity, resilience, and diversity.

The event began with a round of welcoming remarks from Mayor of Turku Piia Elo and Port of Turku CEO Minna Pirkkanen, alongside BPO Chair Alan Aleksandrowicz, SG Bogdan Ołdakowski, and Baltic Transport Journal Editor-in-Chief Przemek Myszka. Together, they set the strategic tone for the audience’s topical journey of the day.

Ports in transition – pressures within, pressures without

Those who wish to lead must get comfortable in the art of thinking the unthinkable. Leena Jokinen (Finland Futures Research Center; the University of Turku) emphasized that maritime futures require genuinely long-term perspectives to drive sustainable development and avoid unforeseen consequences. She argued that maritime industry players must act as catalysts rather than followers to shape upcoming trends within a 30-to-80-year horizon, navigating industry uncertainties while addressing current sustainable future trends such as environmental clean-up ships, land electricity challenges, transport synergies, energy flexibility, cybersecurity, and defense.

Port of Turku delivered a strong follow-up, offering a how-to in terms of applying theory and taking real steps towards a sustainable future. Minna Pirkkanen (Port of Turku) outlined the port’s role as a flexible maritime hub with a strong turnaround time and hinted at the company’s Environmental Programme 2030. One of its most ambitious points is carbon neutrality in port operations by 2029. But the real star of the presentation was the new ferry terminal, Fregatti. The new terminal, designed with passenger comfort and adaptability in mind, will serve all visiting ferries and feature an automated loading area with 48 lines spanning a total length of 6.8 km. Additionally, the project incorporates a battery energy storage system (BESS), and circular economy practices such as reusing waste concrete.

The port industry faces a plethora of challenges, some not as big picture as others. Oskar Egerström (TT Club) highlighted some more hands-on risks ports face in relation to claims, such as fraud and theft, ship-related incidents, various possiblities of infrastructure damage, as well as all the little possible slips, trips and falls the boots on deck are facing. He also highlighted the impacts of climate change alongside escalating climate challenges like 2024 being a record hottest year, a 30% increase in losses from the prior year, and global natural catastrophe losses exceeding $100bn for the fifth consecutive year. But it is not all doom and gloom. Climate resilience can be strengthened, e.g. by avoiding focus on a single risk, balancing short-term versus long-term measures or accommodating uncertainty in design.

The internal and external pressures were taken under the scope once again during the following discussion panel. Because ports face unique disruptions, slow adaptation is no longer viable, and tailored approaches are essential. Ensuring resilience and competitiveness requires protecting dual-use infrastructure, frequent policy adjustments for challenges like drones, and smart dialogue between policymakers and industry to keep sustainability actions feasible.

How to make a shipping corridor green – exactly

Let’s start with a definition. What is a green shipping corridor (GSC)? Linda Styhre (IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute) defined green corridors as zero-emission routes reliant on net-zero lifecycle fuels, serving as catalysts for large-scale maritime decarbonization. She emphasized that their success depends on three core elements, these being the route, vessel and fuel, and well-to-wake lifecycle emissions, while noting that high costs, low customer demand, and inadequate policy instruments remain some of the primary barriers to implementation.

Anne Britt Høydal (DNV) went a step further, suggesting that in the end, green corridors lack a single fixed definition and are instead evolving ecosystems rather than simple port-to-port routes. She noted that achieving success requires aligning diverse stakeholders, including cargo owners, shipowners, port authorities, and financial institutions, all driven by different incentives. To circle back to ports, they can act as catalysts by functioning as future energy hubs, unlocking funding, and securing long-term competitiveness, among other vital functions.

Discussion on the customers’ willingness to pay for green solutions, concluded with a nuanced “yes and no” since short-term positive attitudes have cooled and maritime customer demand alone will likely be insufficient to drive industry-wide greening. Panelists emphasized that greening transport requires a collaborative team effort that can be led by any entity depending on corporate values and goals. Success does not rely on overcoming single limiting factor (e.g. a technological drawback), but on creating a commercially viable and opportunity-rich environment.

Jumping the cargo fence – biodiversity, resilience, diversity

While operational knowledge was traditionally sufficient, modern leaders must master investment, risk assessment, finance, geopolitics, and strategy, treating decarbonization as a leadership test under uncertainty where waiting for certainty risks arriving too late. Irene Rosberg (Copenhagen Business School) emphasized that maritime leaders must develop proactive skills to anticipate constant disruption rather than reacting to it. Furthermore, a sign of a modern leader is one, that evaluates the employees based both on merit and skills. In the end sound judgment without blind spots remains essential to overcoming industry hurdles.

Kirsti Tarnanen (Finnish Ports Association) in turn outlined some of the parts of the port biodiversity roadmap. The roadmap aims to increase sector awareness, identify nature-related impacts, and establish milestone-driven measures emphasizing local biodiversity and pollution. Noting that an industry roadmap lowers the barrier for individual ports to engage in strategic environmental work, Kirsti stressed that the active participation of port executives is indispensable for its success.

The closing discussion panel highlighted that while diversity and biodiversity demand administrative resources, they can become valuable assets for core port operations. Panelists noted that implementing solutions requires strategic timing, choosing whether to wait for industry-wide standardization or act as a frontrunner. Embracing broader aspects of diversity, such as gender, age, and culture, fosters new perspectives, out-of-the-box problem-solving, and other organizational advantages.

Wrapping up the first day, a partner spotlight featured a round of presentations by conference sponsors, beginning with Pål Espen Nordhaug, representing Hallgruppen, discussing flexible warehousing and bulk storage solutions for modern port logistics. The session continued with Riika-Maria Iljin from Forlog presenting on industrial logistics and packaging solutions, and concluded with Lauri Iljin sporting the Turku Stevedoring colors, highlighting their role as a main port crane and breakbulk operator in Turku.

We will continue our coverage of this year’s edition of the Baltic Ports Conference tomorrow, so stay tuned for DAY2!