The Finnlines fleet saw a reshuffle after the purchase of EUROPALINK, last week.
At the end of April, NORDLINK, already renamed FINNSWAN, will move from the Malmö–Travemünde route to the Naantali–Långnäs–Kapellskär route.
She will be one of the first ships of this cargo capacity (4,215 lane metres) to service the Finnlines customers.
Before, she will undergo refurbishment in the public areas.
2017 marked another record trading year for Stena Line on its routes from Belfast to Cairnryan, Liverpool and Heysham.
- Freight units: 514,000 (+3%)
- Cars: 360,000 (+2.5%)
- Passengers: over 1.5m (+2.5%)
- Coach traffic delivered the biggest increase at 10.5% underscoring Belfast’s ongoing tourist boom.
Today Belfast represents Stena Line’s largest operational hub with seven ships providing up to 22 daily crossing options.
A further £500,000 will be invested in the upgrade of onboard passenger facilities this spring.
Photo: Stena Line
On Friday 2 February 2018, the official keel-laying ceremony of the first 3,100 lane meter Stena RoPax (Hull W0263) took place at the AVIC Weihai Shipyard in China.
The two new vessels under construction for Stena RoRo are planned for 2019 and 2020, and will be deployed on the Irish Sea.
Photo: Stena Line
Viking Line Abp has decided not to exercise the option to construct another vessel included in its shipbuilding contract with Xiamen Shipbuilding Industry Co., Ltd. The option has expired.
- ORTC (Observatoire Régional des Transports de la Corse) published the first statistics for the year 2017. Some highlights:
- Total of ferry passengers: 4,144,614 (+2.1%)
- Total of airborne passengers: 4,025,727 (+9.7%) from which 241,744 came with low-cost flights.
- Several ports, both in Corsica and on the Continent saw a progression in passenger traffic. Ajaccio +5%, Bastia +2%, Marseille +8% (but Nice -9%), Genoa +14%.
- The ferry port of Porto Vecchio and the airports of Ajaccio, Bastia, Calvi and Figari have set new records.
- On the ro-ro freight side, most ports saw an increase. Only Toulon, on mainland France, went down -8%. Marseille is the most important mainland French port for freight.
- Corsica Linea is the biggest freight carrier, and saw month after month a steady increase. Second is La Meridionale, followed by Corsica Ferries.
All statistics can be found on the old-style (and in French) ORTC website under ‘publications’.
Photo: Mike Louagie
Port of Marseille Fos set to build on 2017 growth
From the many 2017 figures from Port of Marseille Fos we highlight the ones relevant for the ferry industry.
- An 11% increase in ro-ro volumes – led by 202,000 trailers on Corsica and North Africa trades.
- Passenger carryings on Corsica and North Africa ferry services rose 7% to 1.2 million.
- New project expenditure included €14.6m to enlarge the Marseille harbour area’s Passe Nord access for cruise and ferry vessels, a €2.5m ferry terminal upgrade and the €2.3m installation of an 800-tonne capacity project cargo ro-ro ramp in Fos – the largest in France.
- Environmental initiatives, including further ‘cold ironing’ facilities for ferries, reduced port dues for ‘green’ vessels under the Environmental Ship Index and membership of the LNG Focus Group – following the MoU signed last July – under which major world ports are working to promote LNG as a marine fuel.
The Swedish company Processkontroll Elektriska AB has been chosen to build the new shore power installation in the Port of Oslo.
Stena Line would like to connect its ferry STENA SAGA. However, to convert the veteran Stena is seeking subsidies from Enova SF, owned by the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy. Otherwise it is not economically sustainable.
On Tuesdays the ship is 10 hours in port. According to the company’s own calculations, the use of shore power every Tuesday will help reduce annual emissions by about seven tonnes of NOx and 300 tonnes of CO2.
Color Line already has two ships connected to shore power. Now the port hopes that DFDS will also opt for cold ironing for its cruise ferries.
Photo: Mike Louagie
Interferry main event heading back to Australia
Interferry has chosen Hobart, Tasmania, as the venue for its 45th annual conference in October 2020.
“We felt it was important to go back to Australia – we have a strong base of members there and they have always been very supportive,” explains CEO Mike Corrigan. “It’s also another strategically significant opportunity to extend our influence and membership in the Asia-Pacific region following the 2016 conference in Manila.”
The host company will be association member TT-Line Spirit of Tasmania.
Meanwhile the next two events will be hosted by fast ferry operators – Ultramar in Cancun, Mexico, this October and London’s MBNA Thames Clippers in 2019.
The ESPO Award 2018 will go to the port authority that creates a good workplace environment for its employees and demonstrates its investment in a diverse and inclusive environment, facilitating mutual respect, non-discrimination and personal development.
Guadeloupe Ports Caraïbes won the ESPO Award in 2017 (see photo)
Project submissions have to reach the ESPO secretariat by Friday 29 June 2018 at the latest.
Permanent sixth ferry needed for Saaremaa
According to an article (in Estonian) on www.err.ee the Port of Tallinn would like to have a permanent solution for the summer ferry service to the island of Saaremaa. Five ferries are in service. Now REGULA acts as backup vessel, but the company would like to have a permanent additional, sixth ferry.
A charter is actually being negotiated.
The solution of building a new ship depends on how much the Port of Tallinn receives from the State.