Port of Zeebrugge Will Become Entirely Brexit Proof
Ferry Shipping News visited Port of Zeebrugge’s CEO, Mr Joachim Coens, for an interview.
Mr Coens was one of the distinguished speakers at our Ferry Shipping Summit in Amsterdam.
Unsurprisingly the main subject of the conversation was the importance of the United Kingdom as a trading partner, its ro-ro services, and the issues around the Brexit.
Red and White Fleet, the original San Francisco Bay tourism cruise company, announced today it will be partnering with Golden Gate Zero Emission Marine to purchase the first hydrogen fuel cell boat, in Spring of 2020. The company has its sights set on changing the way marine vessels consume energy in the United States and are excited about moving their fleet to zero pollution by 2025.
Golden Gate Zero Emission Marine was awarded a $3 million grant by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to build the first hydrogen fuel cell vessel in the US. This initiative provides a solution to a $330 billion dollar global maritime pollution problem. This project was supported by the “California Climate Investments” (CCI) program.
Photo: Golden Gate Zero Emission Marine
Molslinjen, the company that takes over the concession for the Bornholm routes from Danske Færger as from 1 September 2018, has decided to acquire Danske Færger entirely.
Molslinjen notified the Danish Competition and Consumer Agency of the merger. The latter will now have to approve the transaction. All interested parties are invited to comment on the merger by 4 July 2018 at 12:00am. Link below. Danske Færger A/S is owned by Bornholmstrafikken Holding A/S (50%) and Clipper Group A/S (50%). Bornholmstrafikken Holding A/S is 100% owned by the Danish Ministry of Transport.
Routes operated by Molslinjen now
Routes operated by Danske Færger now:
With public service contract:
Without public service contract:
Link to the Danish Competition and Consumer Agency (Konkurrence- og Forbrugerstyrelsen)
Some 141 staff members of former Scop SeaFrance will not get any further severance. This is what the Court in Calais decided.
DFDS said that the staff promised not to bring nor DFDS, and neither Eurotunnel, to Court, in exchange for individual severance agreements. The Court followed this logic.
The workers can still decide to appeal against the decision.
DFDS will sell two combined freight and passenger ferries, KAUNAS SEAWAYS (1989) and VILNIUS SEAWAYS (1987) to Ukrferry. The former train ferries have been on time charter to Ukrferry for several years, for deployment on routes in the Black Sea. Delivery of the ferries is expected in July. The sale will affect the employment of around 70 crew members that DFDS will seek to employ in its own route network.
Ukrferry already owned the sistervessel GREIFSWALD. The fourth vessel in the series —PETERSBURG–, is owned by Black Sea Ferry & Investments (Baltic Fleet LLC). She is arrested and docked at Paljasaare, Tallinn, since late April.
The aluminium hull for the newest zero-emission ferry for Fjord1 has arrived at the Halsnøy Dock in Norway, for painting and mounting of thrusters.
During summer the superstructure will be mounted and the remaining equipment installed alongside the quay at Omastrand.
The ferry is developed by Fjellstrand and will operate on the route Halhjem-Våge, not far from the yard.
This 100% electric car ferry is a further developed version of the AMPERE.
Delivery will happen in December 2018.
One of the two new E-Flexer ferries bound for the Belfast – Liverpool route in 2020 has recently marked an important production milestone by celebrating its official keel-laying at the AVIC shipyard in Weihai, China. The new vessels will have capacity for 1 000 passengers, 120 cars as well as 3 100 freight lane meters.
TAZLINA was put in the water in Mid-May and is currently moored south of the Vigor assembly hall. Welding and adjusting on the bow door has been in the works this entire month.The stern and side door hydraulics are complete and were tested and inspected by ABS & US Coast Guard. All the running gear is now aligned and the chock-fast foundations were set for the main engines. The sea trials are currently scheduled to start during July 2018.
A sister vessel is expected in the spring of 2019.
DFDS lacks digital experts. “We simply have a hard time recruiting the IT experts we need, even though new colleagues will immediately be involved in tasks that really matter to people and trade. The tasks we can offer are probably among the most meaningful and exciting an IT developer will get,” says Henrik Holck, EVP, People and Ships.
Tallinn Terminal D Works Commenced
On Monday, 25 June construction works commenced in Tallinn Old City Harbour’s Terminal D where Tallink ferries are served.