Arctic Rail – a platform for trilateral rail collaboration in the European Arctic
Arctic Rail is a cross-border collaboration platform bringing together public and private stakeholders to strengthen the Arctic rail system across Finland, Sweden and Norway. Our strategic focus is the Oulu–Luleå–Narvik corridor — the backbone of the European Arctic railway network and the only continuous rail connection between the EU and an ice-free port in the High North Atlantic.
As the core east–west axis of the system, the Oulu–Luleå–Narvik corridor also enables the development of connecting routes and future capacity across the Northern Calotte. This includes the long-term potential of Inlandsbanan as a southern redundancy and capacity resource, as well as a future northern corridor from Kiruna/Svappavaara through Pajala, Kittilä, Kolari and Sodankylä to Rovaniemi, linking mineral regions, industry and communities more deeply across national borders.
Arctic Rail works to enable investments, increase capacity and improve resilience in the rail system by promoting coordinated, trilateral planning between authorities, municipalities, regions and industry. By addressing bottlenecks on the Iron Ore Line and its connecting routes, Arctic Rail supports industrial development, export logistics, civil preparedness and sustainable mobility across the Northern Calotte.
Through collaboration, shared analysis and a system-wide perspective, Arctic Rail helps align national priorities with EU frameworks, creating the conditions for long-term competitiveness, security and resilient growth in the European Arctic region.
Board and other positions
Regular members
- Markus Petäjäniemi (Chairman), Kiruna Cargo AB – Chairman of the Board
- Linda Bjurholt, LKAB Malmtrafik– Area Manager, Logistics
- Børge Edvardsen Klingan, Narvik Havn KF – Port Director
- Mats Taaveniku, Kiruna Municipality – Municipal Commissioner, Kiruna Municipality
- Lena Goldkuhl, Boden Municipality – Center Coordinator, DRIZZLE, Boden Municipality
- Elisabeth Sinclair, Norrbotniabanegruppen – Project Leader, Norrbotniabanegruppen
- Mikael Lindström, Stegra – Head of Public Affairs, Stegra
- Johannes Sundelin, Region Norrbotten – Chair, Regional Development Committee, Region Norrbotten
- Niklas Rossbach, Swedish Institute of International Affairs (Utrikespolitiska institutet) – Senior Research Fellow, Programme for Global Politics and Security
Substitute members
- Roland Kemppainen, Tornedalsrådet – Chairman, Tornedalsrådet
- Trond Davidsen, Seafood Norway (Sjømat Norge) – Director of International Relations, Sjømat Norge
- Veronica Jägare, Luleå University of Technology, Railway Technology Centre – Director, Luleå Railway Research Center (JVTC)
- Leif‑Gunnar Hanssen, UiT – Project Manager, Department of Building, Energy and Material Technology, Campus Narvik, UiT – The Arctic University of Norway
Auditor
- Gunnar Sjödelius
Partner organisations
- Norrbotniabanegruppen
- Tornedalsrådet
- Nordkalottrådet
- Ofotebanealliansen
Calls – public funding
- EU financing
- Regional financing
- National financing
Operational team
Markus Petäjäniemi: Communications, strategy
Communications, strategy, membership: Jan Ots
Branding, communications, membership: Daniel Kangas
Proposals: Lisa Ek
