The world`s busiest artificial waterway, the Kiel Canal (known in Germany as the NORD-OSTSEE-KANAL) runs for almost 100 km right through Schleswig-Holstein - from Brunsbüttel to Kiel-Holtenau - and links the North Sea with the Baltic. An average of 250 nautical miles will be saved by using the Kiel Canal instead of the way around Skaw. During its bulduing phasis naval strategies were important - today the Kiel Canal is the basis for the trade between the countries of the baltic area with the rest of the world.