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sandra

Feb 20
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BC Ferries Names and Christens the first Damen-Built Island Class Ferries

By 2020 Newsletter week 8

BC Ferries Names and Christens the first Damen-Built Island Class Ferries

ISLAND DISCOVERY and ISLAND AURORA are the newest hybrid vessels to enter the fleet and will enter service in mid-2020, serving the Powell River – Texada Island and Port McNeill – Alert Bay – Sointula routes, respectively. The names were selected with community input and celebrate the beauty of the journey and the important connection to the coastal communities the ferries will soon serve.

A ceremony on 19 February began with a few words from BC Ferries and Damen Shipyards, followed by the unveiling of the ships’ names, and the christening of the hulls.

Feb 20
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New EUR 60 million Public Tender for Regular Ferry Link Soon to be Launched by the Sicily Region

By 2020 Newsletter week 8

Regione Siciliana will launch soon (April) a new public tender for the ferry links to and from the smaller islands surrounding Sicily. The contract is worth EUR 300 million for five years (60 million per year) and the draft plan has been drawn up by the consulting company T Bridge. The current concession is due to expire at the end of this year.

The procedure still to be opened will help the regional government to find companies interested at serving a network of 23 lines, of which one is a new entry: the Cefalù – Aeolian Islands maritime route.

The last concession awarded and still active today (it was launched five years ago for the same amount of money) saw Ustica Lines, Caronte & Tourist and Siremar as the companies with the highest number of lines granted.

Feb 20
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DFDS Reveals New Relaxation Lounge on DUNKERQUE SEAWAYS

By 2020 Newsletter week 8

Since Monday 17 February, passengers looking for peace and quiet can enjoy the new Relax Lounge on DUNKERQUE SEAWAYS. The lounge boasts luxury reclining chairs built into an airline style pod for extra privacy, complimented by soft lighting for the perfect stress-free environment. Prices depend on availability and start from £6 per person each way.

Children under 16 are not permitted into the Relax Lounge.

The ships’ Premium Lounge areas have also been fully refurbished with comfortable lounge furniture and modern décor to provide the luxurious and peaceful surroundings demanded by the modern traveller.  This private lounge is open 24 hours a day and is available for all ages from £12 per person each way. Passengers can enjoy complimentary glass of Prosecco, premium snacks and pastries, hot and cold refreshments and hot food available from the Premium Lounge menu.

With the success of the Horizon restaurant, a pizza, pasta, salad concept on the Dover to Calais routes, the refit also includes this restaurant being installed on all three ships on the Dover to Dunkirk route. Here guests can enjoy a selection of freshly cooked, made to order pizzas, pasta dishes and healthy salads. Passengers can place their order, take a buzzer with them to their table and collect their meals when called.

Passengers will also benefit from new bathroom facilities throughout the ship and can now enjoy watching a spot of television in the Lighthouse Café, with newly installed TVs as an additional feature.

The refit was designed by SMC Design and carried out by Aecor Marine, with the bathrooms being fitted by Trimline.

DELFT SEAWAYS will be fully refitted from 1st March with DOVER SEAWAYS at the end of March 2020.

Feb 20
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FERRY FINANCE

By 2020 Newsletter week 8

Viking Line Doubles Its Earnings in 2019

Key figures for the full year 2019

  • -0.28% sales EUR 496.4 million
  • + 87% operating income EUR 17.4 million
  • +109% income before taxes EUR 13.6 million
  • +96.3% income after taxes EUR 10.8 million

Key figures for Q4

  • -3.5% sales EUR 115.6 million
  • First three quarters was better than previous year.
  • Improved net sales contribution per passenger and lower operating costs.
  • Q4 was affected by solidarity strike by Finnish Seafarers Union.
Feb 20
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FERRY PORTS

By 2020 Newsletter week 8

DFDS Looking for New Inland Areas Behind the Port of Trieste

The Danish shipping company DFDS, which two years ago took over the Turkish player Un RoRo with its maritime line from Istanbul to North Adriatic and France and the port terminal in Italy, intends to invest in new areas behind the port of Trieste.

Jens Peder Nielsen, head of Samer Seaports & Terminals, said to Ferry Shipping News that the group is interested in areas connected to the railway and part of the port’s free zone. “The aim is to increase intermodal services between Trieste and inland destinations in Central and Eastern Europe” Nielsen said. “We are looking at areas of at least 50-100,000 square metres where we can move the cargo units we transport between Italy and Turkey on board our ships and between Trieste and the rest of Europe by train”.

Samer Seaports & Terminals has plans also to invest in a new gantry crane and to upgrade the rail shuffle currently existing on the quay of the North Adriatic port.

In the 2019 full year report DFDS states “that port congestion in Trieste lowered the efficiency of train services” and also added that “the last major restructuring to be completed is to improve the operational efficiency of the two ports currently operated in Trieste. This is expected to be achieved during Q2 2020”.

Feb 20
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Brittany Ferries and Ports de Normandie Launch Ambitious Rail Project

By 2020 Newsletter week 8

Brittany Ferries is going to become a rail operator too. The idea is to launch a freight train connecting Bayonne, close to the Spanish border, and Cherbourg. From there on, freight can be transferred to ferries, bound for Ireland or the UK.

Brittany Ferries has several strategic reasons:

  • Enhancing productivity by reducing the number of semi-tractors, creating more space for the trailer and thus augmenting the percentage of non-accompanied freight.
  • Anticipating emission regulations by offering a service with a better environmental performance.
  • Consolidation of its market position on the long routes to Spain and the British Isles.

Ports de Normandie has an ambitious strategy too:

  • Making the ports ready for larger ferries
  • Increasing its hinterland.
  • Giving logistic answers to Brexit
  • Creating multimodal services, as an alternative for or complimentary to road tarnsport
  • Helping to make transport greener.

Brittany Ferries will finance the new rail terminal in Bayonne and a fleet of LOHR railway wagons. The LOHR railway wagon has been lowered and articulated and as a result allows for fast and safe transfer of semitrailers.

Feb 20
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INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS

By 2020 Newsletter week 8

ESPO Has Published its Position Paper on the European Green Deal Objectives in Ports

The publication of this position paper fits into the European Shipping Week. In the framework of the European Shipping Week, ESPO and ECSA have organised today a workshop on “Decarbonising the shipping industry: What’s already happening and how can we help accelerate it?”.

Feb 20
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INTERESTING

By 2020 Newsletter week 8

UNE 27800:2020 – A New Standard for Seaport Passenger Boarding Bridges

ADELTE, world-leading specialist in the design and manufacture of Seaport Passenger Boarding Bridges, is pleased to announce that the Spanish Association for Standardisation, UNE, has recently approved and published UNE 27800:2020, a new standard for Seaport Passenger Boarding Bridges (SPBBs) destined for cruise and ferry terminals.

This new Spanish standard specifies safety and security requirements, as well as performance and operating specifications for SPBBs, which are used to service all types of cruise ships and ferries. The standard is intended to improve fulfilment of the stipulations laid out in the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC, setting specific and vital minimum criteria for safe, durable and practical boarding bridges.

Feb 20
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Worries Caused by Interruption of Ferry Service between Corsica and Sardinia

By 2020 Newsletter week 8

On 6 February, Moby Line’s GIRAGLIA hit a rock. She had to be repaired and left the route between Sardinia and Corsica without a ship for 10 days.

It is a vital logistic link between the two islands. The other ship, BASTIA, was not available due to winter maintenance. She is expected back soon.

The incident raised concerns:

  • How long can this old tonnage remain in service? GIRAGLIA is from 1981, BASTIA from 1974.
  • Since 2016 talks have been going on about the creation of an inter-island, inter-European public service contract (GECT – groupement européen de coopération territoriale), so far without anything concrete.