Bursztyn Unity flies Polish flag at Szczecin christening on Independence Day

Christening in Szczecin

Bursztyn Unity, a passenger and vehicle ferry built by the Gdańsk Repair Shipyard (Gdańska Stocznia Remontowa), was christened and received its Polish flag in Szczecin on 11 November 2026, Independence Day. The ceremony at Wały Chrobrego was attended by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, who handed the flag to the ship's captain, Wojciech Żukowski, before it was hoisted on the mast. Zofia Gałka, who has worked in Polish shipping for many years and now heads the special-purpose companies building the new ferries, acted as godmother and broke a champagne bottle against the ship's starboard side. The ship is the second of its kind built at the Gdańsk yard for Unity Line, following its twin, Jantar Unity, which was handed over on 17 December 2025. At the flag-raising, Tusk said:

“Today the Baltic is becoming a Polish sea.”

Minister of Infrastructure Dariusz Klimczak, who also attended, stressed the choice of date for the ceremony:

“There is no more beautiful day than National Independence Day to raise the Polish flag on a new ship.”

Route and specifications

Unity Line, part of the PŻM group, will operate the ferry under the POLSCA Baltic Ferries brand, which the articles describe as a joint initiative of three Polish shipowners. The route runs between Świnoujście and Ystad in Sweden, with regular sailings starting on 18 November 2026. The articles give a length of 195.6 metres, a width of 32.2 metres, 48,627 gross tonnes and 8,950 tonnes deadweight. The vehicle deck, 4,100 metres of lane, can carry about 270 standard trucks depending on loading, and the ship takes up to 400 passengers with a crew of about 50. The speed figure differs between reports: one gives about 19 knots, while another gives 14 knots and describes four LNG engines with battery hybrid support. According to one report, the crossing from Świnoujście to Ystad takes just under seven hours.

Why the Polish flag came now

Until recently Bursztyn Unity was registered in Cyprus, with Limassol as its port. One article explains that ships had to be registered by March 2026, even while still under construction, to obtain an MMSI code and a call sign, and at that point it was not yet clear whether rules for Polish flagging under the 'Polskie Morze' programme would take effect. An amendment to the tonnage tax law has been adopted, but its implementing rules only take effect on 1 January 2027, so the ship received the Polish flag before them. Deputy Minister Marchewka said more ferries would be reflagged under the white and red in the first half of 2027.

Next ships and political reaction

Amber Unity, the third ferry, is under construction at the Gdańsk yard and is due to enter service in 2029. Former maritime economy minister Marek Gróbarczyk responded on X, calling Bursztyn Unity the latest in a series of 'PiS' ferries and citing 1 billion zloty in government funding for Polish shipbuilding under the previous administration. He accused Tusk of hypocrisy for attending a ceremony tied to decisions taken by his predecessors. In a second post he claimed the current government had sold quays at Port Szczecin to Germany and cancelled a container terminal project in Świnoujście.