Lysekil (Sweden)

Lysekil is a port town in Sweden's Vastra-Gotaland County, with population around 8,000. The town is located on Stangenas Peninsula's southern tip (at the mouth of Gullmarn Fjord) and is best-known for its two nature reserves - Stangehuvud (featuring red granite cliffs) and Gullmarn (marine conservation area).

The settlement was established as fishing village and during 18th-19th centuries was developed as town specializing in commercial fishing, shipping trade and stone industry (red granite quarries). In the 19th century, the town became a prominent spa resort. Tourism is still a large contributor to its economy, along with petroleum refining (Preemraff Lysekil oil refinery is one of the country's largest).

Lysport

As cruise port, Lysekil (Lysport/locode SELYS) is visited mainly by luxury ships from the fleets of RSSC-Regent, Azamara, Oceania, Silversea, Hapag-Lloyd. In the harbor there is also a large yacht marina serving mega-yachts and pleasure boats. The port is strategically located (between Oslo and Goteborg), with a short approach from North Sea.

Most of the shipping traffic is to Norway, from where it countries to Western and Southern Europe (Mediterranean) and North Africa. Lysport has railway tracks linking all quays. The seaport is located approx 30 km (19 mi) from European Route E6 (interstate highway running through Norway and Sweden's west coast) linking Nordkapp with Trelleborg.

Lysport has capacity to handle vessels with max DWT (deadweight tonnage) 50,000 tons. The port serves mainly as intermediary storage of goods (a total of 25,000 m2 warehouse space) for construction materials, tiles, wood pulp. One warehouse (located at short distance from the cargo dock / quay) is temperature-regulated and used for storing perishables. The port has 5 gantry cranes (with max capacity 80 tons each), over 20 forklifts, tractors, self-unloaders, knuckle-boom cranes and other specialized cargo-handling equipment.

Port's annual cargo capacity is around 750,000 tons. Bulk cargoes are mainly imports (chalk and talc) offloaded directly to their manufacturing plant in the harbor. The produced slurry is sold to various companies within the paper industry. Sawn timber is another cargo coming from sawmills in Norway and Sweden. Timber products are then transshipped to France, Spain and North Africa.

The Swedish renewable energy company Seabased AB constructed country’s first wave power plant northwest of Kungshamn. The power plant was built and assembled in Lysekil, then shipped to its current location in North Sea.