Chairman of the board Valdo Kalm said that the competition is part of the 2017 Port of Tallinn master plan.

We have made public technical draft projects for detailed plans. While we have received some feedback, the groundwork has been done well and four detailed plans are undergoing evaluation," Kalm said. He suggested that the company perceived room for growth in the real estate business. "An area of 16 hectares (almost 40 acres) in the Old Harbor will be covered with properties. We are after high-quality urban space complete with real estate," he said.

The Port of Tallinn wants to become the most innovative harbor in the Baltic Sea, with green technologies seen as one way to achieve that. "We use seawater for heating and cooling, which is cheaper than other heating solutions," Kalm said.

The port's real estate development includes apartments, offices and business premises, with public urban spaces in between. "While real estate is not our core business, it is easier to rent out or sell apartments when they form a part of high-quality urban space."

Contract worth €2 million

The company expects architects to come up with a design that is imposing, integral, environmentally friendly and in line with all the standards of modern city space.

The architectural contest covers an area of 50,000 square meters of which 29,000 square meters of built-up area.

Once it has the winner of the competition, Port of Tallinn will launch a negotiated tendering process for a full construction project. The contract is estimated to be worth €2 million before VAT. Start of construction will depend on how quickly detailed plans for the A-Terminal and the Cruise Terminal area will be processed.

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