Havila has asked the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications for permission to delay the start of the coastal route, normally planned for 1 January 2021.
After Havila Kystruten won one of the transport contracts (and Hurtigruten the two others), the company ordered four new ships: two in Turkey, two in Spain. The Spanish yard went bankrupt. On top, the pandemic delayed the construction at Tersan.
As a stop gap solution Havila was going to charter other ships. But why charter ships when the route between Bergen and Kirkenes is basically closed because of corona. That is what Havila wants to know from Norway.
“As long as the corona is ravaging and there are strict travel restrictions, the market situation means that there is no need for full traffic on the coastal route. We have therefore asked the Ministry of Transport and Communications for clarification of what is expected, and also whether they believe that a replacement vessel is needed,” the CEO of Havila Kystruten, Arild Myrvoll, says in a press release.
