Positive growth outlook for the Finnish maritime industry

According to a questionnaire sent to Finnish maritime companies, the majority of them are seeking growth: 84 per cent of all respondents are growth-oriented, and 27 per cent are strongly growth-oriented. The share of growth-oriented companies has risen clearly since the 2023 questionnaire of maritime companies, when growth-oriented companies accounted for 67 per cent in total.

Growth is supported in particular by order books in the maritime industry. Of the companies that responded to the questionnaire, 40 per cent saw their order book grow over the past year. Order book growth was more common than decline in all parts of the value chain. Order books grew most often among installation contractors and turnkey suppliers. Growth was strongest at the start of the value chain: around a quarter of design and consulting firms saw their order book grow by more than 20 per cent.

“The growth in the large shipyards’ order books, and the longer-term outlook this brings, support the strengthening of the entire ecosystem. The positive momentum is visible at company level: the appetite for growth has increased, and in addition to the domestic market, companies are looking beyond Finland more actively than before,” says Henri Hakamo, Tesi’s Chief Strategy and Research Officer.

Companies expect their revenue to develop positively, and a typical maritime company forecasts growth of ten per cent this year. Revenue is concentrated particularly in the domestic market: three out of four respondents generate at least half of their maritime industry revenue in Finland.

“As end products such as cruise ships are delivered abroad, domestic sales are often indirect exports. This shows up in the statistics when a finished ship is handed over to a foreign customer,” Hakamo comments.

Of the companies that responded to the questionnaire, 45 per cent operate in international markets, and the majority of them consider themselves internationally competitive. Companies that rate themselves as competitive stand out particularly in innovativeness, aftermarket solutions and price. In addition, around a quarter of respondents are seeking to enter international markets, most often in Europe.

Growth, on the other hand, is held back by labour shortages. Just over a quarter of the companies that responded to the questionnaire suffer from a labour shortage, which is concentrated particularly in operational, hands-on roles. According to the companies, the availability of skilled workers is also the most common obstacle to R&D activities.

The three large shipyards play a major role

The Finnish maritime industry has been built strongly around the large shipyards in Turku, Rauma and Helsinki. More than half of the companies that responded to the questionnaire survey sell to the three largest shipyards. Of those selling to the largest shipyards, around half sell to only one shipyard, most often the Turku shipyard.

The concentration is also geographical, as the majority of companies in the sector are located near the largest shipyards on the southern and western coasts.

“Although the Turku shipyard drives the development of the ecosystem on a large scale, companies in the sector have diversified their business across several pillars and also generate revenue outside the maritime industry value chain,” Hakamo says.

“The Finnish maritime industry is a highly networked sector that competes above all on delivery reliability and quality. The sector’s strength is its broad ecosystem, which, largely through domestic companies, is able to respond flexibly to even the most demanding customer needs,” Hakamo concludes.

The maritime industry refers to the industrial sector built around shipbuilding and ship repair, which, in addition to shipyards, comprises a wide network of subcontractors supplying various products and services for shipbuilding.

Read more here (in Finnish).

About the survey: The survey was conducted by Tesi and is based on the corresponding 2023 survey. It was carried out by combining questionnaire data produced by Taloustutkimus with data obtained from Tesi’s data models. The survey identified a total of around one thousand Finnish maritime companies. The survey was compiled between 6 February and 29 April 2026. The questionnaire sample comprised 201 companies, or 21 per cent of the identified maritime companies. The sample included companies of all sizes.