The working channel of West Coast VTS is VHF 9. 

Reports should include the following information:

• Name of the vessel
• Name of reporting point
• Destination
• Intended route. If an alternative route is selected, this must be reported

Required reports:

• Upon entry into the VTS Area
• Before anchoring
• Before leaving an anchorage 
• After berthing
• Before leaving port; for Port of Rauma, Port of Pori and Port of Vaasa, see chapter “Permission to depart from the ports of Rauma, Pori and Vaasa”
• At the reporting points in the area:
  • Southbound vessels shall report 20 minutes before passing Hylkkari light to Archipelago VTS on VHF channel 71.
  • Northbound vessels shall report 20 minutes before passing Hylkkari light to West Coast VTS on VHF channel 9.

Before departure from Port of Rauma, Port of Pori and Port of Vaasa, vessels shall request a permission to depart from VTS.

The permission to depart issued by the VTS is valid for 20 minutes. The vessel is required to give a report when underway. If the vessel’s departure is delayed, it will have to request a new permission to depart. 

At the Port of Vaasa, passenger vessels operating according to a regular timetable in liner service have the right of way.

Meeting and overtaking is permanently prohibited in the following areas covered by West Coast VTS:

1. Vaasa: Buoys Nygrund S and Nygrund N - Port of Vaasa between longitudes 021º 18,1’E and 021º 32,1’E in Vaasa fairway. The prohibition does not apply to meeting and overtaking situations in which at least one of the vessels has a maximum length of less than 45 meters.
2. Kaskinen: Buoy Rasken - Port of Kaskinen between latitudes 62º 19,3’ N and 62º 20,8’ N in Kaskinen fairway. The prohibition does not apply to meeting and overtaking situations in which at least one of the vessels has a maximum length of less than 45 meters.
3. Kristiinankaupunki: Kristiinankaupunki Lighthouse – Port of Kristiinankaupunki between longitudes 021º 10,2’ E and 021º 18,5’ E in Karhusaari fairway. The prohibition does not apply to meeting and overtaking situations in which at least one of the vessels has a maximum length of less than 45 meters.
4. Merikarvia: Buoys Marjakari and Rosagrund – buoys Brändöö and Silkrunni between latitudes 61° 53,6′ N and 61° 50,8′ N in Merikarvia northern fairway.
5. Eurajoki: Buoys Eurajoki 4 and Eurajoki 7 – buoy Eurajoki 31 between longitudes 021° 22,3′ E and 021° 28,9′ E in Eurajoensalmi fairway.
6. Rauma: Edge mark Erkki - buoy Hans-kloppi between longitudes 021º 15,5’ E and 021º 23,8’ E in Rauma southern fairway. The prohibition does not apply to meeting and overtaking situations in which at least one of the vessels has a maximum length of less than 45 meters.

The meeting and overtaking prohibition areas do not apply to tugs when they are assisting within the meeting and overtaking prohibition area, or to vessels performing icebreaking assistance.

1. The Rauma Valkeakari fairway (7.5 m) has an 8 kn (15 km/h) speed limit for vessels with a draught of 7 m or more.
2. In Vaasa the 6,5 m fairway has a 9,5 kn (18 km/h) speed limit between Nygrund-Stor Hästen.
3. In Vaasa the 9 m fairway has a 15 kn (28 km/h) speed limit between the breakwater and Gråsälsgrynnan.

A vessel must always notify both the VTS and the Finnish Border Guard when anchoring in Finland’s territorial waters. The vessel must make the notification either itself or through its agent. In addition, a vessel anchoring in territorial waters is required to make an electronic customs declaration, even if the vessel is not going to call at a Finnish port.

After leaving a port in Finland, the vessel must also check with the Finnish Border Guard whether anchoring in Finnish territorial waters is possible. Also in this case, a vessel remaining at anchor must make an electronic customs declaration.

1. Remotely operated AtoNs

Upon request, West Coast VTS can adjust the brightness of Aids to Navigation:

• in the Rauma 12 m fairway, and;
• at the Port of Kaskinen.

2. Permanent Virtual AtoNs (V-AIS)

There are following permanent V-AIS-AtoNs in the West Coast VTS area:

• Reilander Virtual                61° 08,10'N      021° 04,12'E

3. Fault Reporting

AtoNs not working correctly? Please inform West Coast VTS by VHF radio on channel 9 or call Turku Radio 0800-181818. 

Use of channels that deviates from the channel design refers to a situation where a vessel uses a channel in a manner that deviates from the channel’s design and the adequacy of the channel space cannot be ensured based on the design. If the vessel’s static draught is greater than the channel’s design draught taking into account the current water level, the vessel shall ensure that her net under keel clearance remains adequate and demonstrate it to the VTS Centre that is responsible for monitoring the fairway.

Vessel’s operator, agent or master shall give the notice of channel use at least 24 hours before its arrival at the pilot boarding position, or if the vessel is expected to arrive in less than 24 hours, no later than when the vessel has left the port of departure for a Finnish port. A vessel departing a Finnish port shall give the notice of channel use as soon as possible, at latest when the departure report is given.

The notice of channel use shall include the following items:

A. Vessel’s name

B. Which channel or part of channel the vessel is intending to use in a manner that deviates from the channel design

C. What is the manner that deviates from the channel design

D. Length between perpendiculars LBP and Breadth

E. Static Draught

F. Centre of Buoyancy, KB

G. Centre of Gravity, KG

H. Metacentric Height, GM

I. Block Coefficent, Cb

When ensuring the adequate net UKC and giving the notice of channel use, it is recommended to utilize the tools provided by the Finnish Transport and Infrastructure Agency. The notice of channel use can be given in the form of a squat calculation made with the Squat Calculator with regard to items D–I. The calculation can be shared as a link, or as a pdf-printout sent by e-mail to the VTS Centre. When using the Squat Calculator, it is enough to write the information of points A–C in the e-mail.

In Archipelago VTS, Bothnia VTS, Saimaa VTS and West Coast VTS monitoring areas the notice of channel use should be sent to the email address supervisors.west@fintraffic.fi. Title the email “Notice of channel use”.

Pori

Vessel mooring and unmooring must be ordered from Port Control at least two hours before the required mooring and unmooring time. Icebreaking assistance must be ordered from Port Control following the guidance of the Port of Pori. 

Sludge disposal must be ordered directly from the service provider of the Port of Pori by email: sludge@veikkolehti.fi.

Port control contact information:

• telephone +358 (0)44 701 2623
• e-mail valvojat.satama@portofpori.fi
• VHF channel 12

Rauma

Port control contact information:

• telephone +358 (0)500 597 579
• e-mail satamavalvonta@portofrauma.com
• VHF channel 10

Vaasa

Port control contact information:

• phone +358 (0)40 567 2975
• e-mail vaasaport@kvarkenports.com
• VHF channel 12

• Kaskinen N

62°17.90′N        21°11.50′E

• Kaskinen S

62°15.51′N        21°5.11′E

• Kristiinankaupunki

62°11.48′N        21°6.08′E

• Pori N

61°36.80′N        21°17.00′E

• Pori S

61°34.00′N        21°22.10′E

• Rauma S

61°7.25′N          21°10.75′E

• Vaasa N

63°15.78′N        20°51.19′E

• Vaasa S

63°12.10′N        20°45.38′E

• Valkeakari

61°10.76′N        21°13.48′E