Attica Group, parent company of Superfast Ferries, Blue Star Ferries and Hellenic Seaways, announced its certification by TÜV AUSTRIA HELLAS according to the International Standard ISO 22301:2019 for the Operation of the Head Offices & Fleet Support and Management Services.
Attica Holdings S.A. announced that, pursuant to the credit rating reassessment performed by ICAP S.A. in line with the provisions of the Common Bond Loan issued on 26.07.2019, the Company maintained a ΑΑ credit rating (low credit risk zone).
Stena Line and Port of Gothenburg signed an agreement for the relocation of Stena Line’s Denmark- and Germany ferry operations to an all-new terminal in Arendal, Gothenburg. The new location will meet the needs of sustainable transport solutions for both Stena Line and Port of Gothenburg.
Read more here.
Energy company Repsol has inaugurated its second LNG supply terminal. The inauguration took place in Santander Spain on 7th June and was attended by Repsol’s Executive Managing Director of Circular Economy and Industrial Transformation, Juan Abascal and Brittany Ferries’ CEO Christophe Mathieu.
The terminal comprises a cryogenic tank with a storage capacity of 1,000m3. It follows the opening of an LNG bunker facility in Bilbao last year. The two facilities are part of a collaboration agreement that Repsol signed with Brittany Ferries in 2019 for the supply of LNG for ships serving Spanish routes.
The new terminal is co-financed by the European Commission through the CEF-Connecting Europe Facilities Program.
By the end of the first year of operations, it is estimated its emissions of CO2 will have been cut by around 12,000 tons.
Danish ship designers OSK Group, consisting of three sister companies with each their area of maritime expertise: OSK-ShipTech, OSK-Offshore and Steen Friis Design, will unify behind one brand going forward – OSK Design.
Both Fjordline ferries STAVANGERFJORD and BERGENSFJORD returned to service between Bergen, Stavanger, Hirtshals and Kristiansand, after a serious upgrade at Fosen Yards.
The single-fuel Rolls Royce LNG engines were exchanged with Wärtsilä dual-fuel LNG/MGO engines – four on each vessel.
The impressive MOBY FANTASY recently delivered by China’s Guangzhou Shipyard successfully concluded its maiden voyage from the Far East to Europe.
Moby’s new flagship, under the command of Genoese captain Massimo Pinsolo, crossed two oceans and the Suez Canal before arriving in the Tyrrhenian Sea at the port of Livorno.
The huge Ro-Pax will be officially presented in Olbia on June 17, and start operating from late June on the Livorno – Olbia route.
With its 37m length, 32m width and a gross tonnage of 69,500 tons, MOBY FANTASY is the one of largest passenger ferries in the world. She has a capacity of 3,000 passengers and 3,850 lane metres.
The high sustainability standards also make it one of the most advanced and technologically sophisticated ferries with respect to environmental protection and emission reduction.
Freight down:
- Since Brexit, Brittany Ferries has seen a decline of around 1/5th in total freight volumes carried on the Channel.
- This year (2023) the drop has worsened worryingly.
- From the start of April, the company has averaged around 2,000 fewer freight units per month than expected. The equates to a drop of around 8% compared with last year.
- Reason: over-capacity and a price war on short sea routes.
OUTLOOK: if this weaker pattern continues, estimates for year-end suggest 15% worse freight performance than originally projected.
Passenger up:
- Passenger volumes for 2023 are encouraging, if not spectacular.
- Volumes are significantly up on 2022, but still lag behind 2019 which was the last pre-Covid comparison year.
- So far this year, Brittany Ferries has booked 1,504,274 passengers (those who have already travelled and those holding a forward reservation). That’s a 17.6% increase on the same period in 2022.
- However, volumes are still down by nearly 15% compared with 2019, a deficit of around 270,000 passengers.
- Looking at forward reservations for the high season (covering April – October), reservations have reached 1,224,120 passengers, compared with 1,097,724 for the same period in 2022. This is an increase of 126,396 passengers, or 12%.
OUTLOOK: for year-end the company is forecasting an 18% boost in total passenger numbers compared with 2022.
In total 1.95 million passengers are forecast to have travelled with Brittany Ferries by the end of the year. This would be a positive result, but still around 100,000 fewer travellers than expected.
Source and details per route in this press release.
In May 2023 AS Tallink Grupp transported 469,878 passengers, which is a 3.3% decrease compared to May 2022.
The number of cargo units decreased by 23.1% to 29,678 units and the number of passenger vehicles by 0.1% to 72,969 units year-on-year.
FINLAND – SWEDEN
The May Finland-Sweden results reflect the operations of the Helsinki-Stockholm and the Turku-Kapellskär/Turku-Stockholm routes. The cruise ferry GALAXY I stopped operating on the Turku-Stockholm route in September 2022 due to a charter contract.
ESTONIA – FINLAND
The May Estonia-Finland results reflect operations of shuttle services of MYSTAR and MEGASTAR.
The shuttle ferry STAR, which operated on the Tallinn-Helsinki route until 1 May 2023, is on long-term charter since 5 May 2023 providing transport services between Ireland, the United Kingdom and France under the OSCAR WILDE name.
The cruise ferry SILJA EUROPA stopped operating on the Tallinn-Helsinki route in August 2022 due to a charter contract.
ESTONIA – SWEDEN
The May Estonia-Sweden results reflect the operations of the Tallinn-Stockholm and the Paldiski-Kapellskär route.
OTHER EVENTS
In May 2023, the charter agreement was signed based on which the cruise ferry SILJA EUROPA will continue providing services in Netherlands until December 2023.
Four years after the last attempt, the Italian ferry company Caronte & Tourist is trying to enter the local Croatian cabotage market again.
Local media report that the newcomer has been already authorized to operate a line between the ports of Zadar and Preko by the Short Sea Maritime Agency.
The vessel to be deployed on the line should be the 1978-built and double ended ferry ULISSE.
But Caronte & Tourist will have to face the opposition expressed by the Municipality of Preko.













