It is reported that Seajets’ ferry Iolkos (former Express Skiathos) will be introduced on the Mandoudi (Evia) – Volos – Northern Sporades route on May 1st.
The ship was recently purchased from Hellenic Seaways, following a package agreement (ship/line) with Attica Group. She was renamed Iolkos and changed her livery.
She was built in Greece (Vernicos Shipyards/1996).
President of Brittany Ferries, Jean-Marc Roué, has posted on his X-account a screenshot of a letter written by “Philcrew Management PTE Ltd” to the seafarers of the Dover-Calais ships. Philcrew is a maritime crew management company for P&O Ferries.
The subject is the new French law that obliges ferry operators between the UK and France to pay their crew at least the French minimum wage. This law applies to all ships making at least 120 calls a year in French ports. The law comes into force in June 2024.
Under the new regulation, the maximum duration of embarkation is up to 14 days. It also specifies that the duration of the consecutive rest on land will be at least equivalent to that of the embarkation.
The Philcrew letter states, “We expect that our crew scheduling model will soon be adjusted to provide for 2 weeks on and 2 weeks off to accommodate the new French law requirement.
“The upcoming changes in regulations directly affect our operations and crew arrangements, particularly impacting our crew members from Asia and those required to undertake extensive travel periods.”
Link to the relevant document about the social dumping. (in French)
Note: In July 2023, a voluntary charter for the protection of seafarers in the cross-Channel sector has been signed by DFDS, Condor Ferries, Stena Line and Brittany Ferries.
The service will depart Rosslare on a Tuesday destined for Cherbourg, complementing weekly departures on Cotentin and Salamanca. That means Brittany Ferries will offer three weekly departures from Rosslare.
“We still have some work to dot the I’s and cross the T’s for the ship and schedule,” explained Kristof Wuytack, freight director Brittany Ferries. “However we want to be sure we hit the ground running when the ship first arrives in port. This positive step continues to strengthen our offer to the Irish market, as growth in freight traffic on Ireland to France routes continues post-Brexit.”
In addition to services operating from Rosslare, Brittany Ferries operates two weekly Cork-Roscoff rotations. The company has massively grown the direct Ireland-France market since 2021 and has re-affirmed its commitment to freight and passenger traffic.”
Tallink Grupp has recently rolled out nauticAi’s electronic logbook solution across its entire fleet, following a successful prototype development and pilot process of the system on the company’s Paldiski-Kapellskär cargo vessel Sailor in 2023.
The new solution enables the company’s vessels to log a whole range of data electronically instead of physical traditional paper logbooks, including fuel consumption data, garbage data, ship’s radio watch data, ballasting operations, fuel bunkering operations and so much more. The new electronic solution shares data with on shore back-office support functions, making real-time vessel and voyage data available for everyone who needs it in the company for better ongoing monitoring and operational efficiencies and improvements.
Were Scotland’s new gas-powered ferries a bad choice? That is the question asked by the BBC, in a very comprehensive article.
Grendi Group has finalised the purchase of the former RoRo Wedellsborg, owned by Navco, 51% owned by Grendi Trasporti Marittimi and 49% by Finaval.
The third ship in the Grendi Group’s fleet will be called Grendi Futura.
Corsica Marina Secunda, is she the last survivor of the Rickmers series of ferries?
She was spotted in Toulon (La Seyne). A few days ago Moby Vincent was beached (ex Stena Normandica), and Sardinia Vera (ex Stena Atlantica) is awaiting her fate in the port of Vado Ligure.
Corsica Marina Secunda, is she the last survivor of the Rickmers series of ferries?
She was spotted in Toulon (La Seyne). A few days ago Moby Vincent was beached (ex Stena Normandica), and Sardinia Vera (ex Stena Atlantica) is awaiting her fate in the port of Vado Ligure.
March volume numbers are compared to 2023 impacted by most of the Easter holiday period falling in March this year compared to April in 2023. In general, this increases passenger volumes and decreases freight volumes compared to 2023 for the month.
Ferry – freight:
Ferry – passenger:
Local media report that a Turkish NGO called The IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation has decided to acquire three ships and launch a relief convoy to Gaza.
IHH currently operates relief voyages from Turkey to Egypt for cross-border transport into Gaza, but this new mission is advertised as an all-water route. It would be the second time that the conservative Islamic group has tried to transit through the Israeli naval blockade around Gaza – and the first time ended in violence.
IHH has acquired three vessels for its “Freedom Flotilla,” reflagged them and changed their names.
It is planning to depart for Gaza by the end of this month with:
The NGO has launched a fundraising appeal to help pay for the vessels and their cargo.
The Region of Sardinia announced that Moby and Ichnusa Lines have been authorized to jointly operate exclusively on the line between Sardinia and Corsica from April 1st to October 31st. This means there will be no change in the summer of 2024 on the maritime link between Santa Teresa di Gallura and Bonifacio.
In more detail, for the upcoming summer season, Moby will be responsible for 62.5% of the total number of scheduled trips, while the remaining 37.5% will be carried out by Ichnusa Line. The Sardinia region requested a minimum of 4 pairs of trips per day with a ferry having a minimum transport capacity of 200 passengers and a garage with at least 190 lane meters, 50 of which are to be used for the transport of commercial vehicles.
The vessels deployed will be the Ichnusa (capacity of 350 passengers and 50 cars) and the Giraglia (400 passengers and 100 cars) for Moby.
A collaborative effort to elevate ferry safety standards in Africa concluded April 17th, after a two-day intensive seminar co-hosted by Interferry and the International Maritime Organization. Over 100 participants from across the African ferry industry and Interferry´s global network convened in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, united in the wake of recent regional tragedies.
The association fielded a delegation of 15 seasoned professionals from its worldwide operator and supplier members, whose purpose was to listen, exchange experience and share best practices on both operational and regulatory levels. Open discussions focused on critical areas impacting safety, including ticketing and passenger counting, cargo loading and stowage, vessel design and classification, insurance and financing, management culture and technical management, incident reporting, and the crucial role of political will in driving safety improvements.
