From 15 May 2018, DFDS will offer individuals the opportunity to sail as passengers on the ro-ro ships between Zeebrugge and Rosyth. It has been possible to sail as a private passenger on the Ghent – Gothenburg route for many years.
With 32 hours at sea en route to or from Sweden, and 23 hours to or from Scotland, it is the ultimate in slow travel, and there is a market for this.
Deltamarin Ltd has signed a contract with Chinese Guangzhou Shipyard International Co, Ltd (GSI) for consultancy and engineering services for the DFDS ro-pax ferries.
DFDS originally signed a contract with OSK-ShipTech for the development of the outline concepts and tender documents, for both the ro-ro vessels now contracted at Jinling, and the ro-pax vessels contracted at GSI.
When MSC/GNV/Moby decided to order ferries at GSI too, DFDS said it wanted to prefer to have an advisor not involved in both projects.
The shipbuilding contract for two ro-pax ferries was signed on February 12 between DFDS and GSI. Both ro-pax ships are planned to be delivered in 2021.
The 4,500 lane metres, 600-pax ships will be deployed on one of the Baltic routes connecting Lithuania to either Sweden or Germany.
Two new ro-pax ferries have been ordered on February 12 for delivery in Q1 and Q3 2021 respectively.
The ships are designed to each carry 4,500 lane metres of freight and passenger vehicles, as well as 600 passengers (with up to 690 berths/250 cabins available).
The two ships will be built by Guangzhou Shipyard International Co, Ltd. at their Nansha Yard in China.
Both ships are planned to be deployed on one of the routes connecting Lithuania (Klaipeda) with either Sweden (Karlshamn) or Germany (Kiel).
The deployment in 2021 is planned to be a catalyst for a reallocation of ships in the Baltic route network ultimately increasing the network’s total freight capacity by around 30%.
DFDS opts for scrubber technology.
The ships will have a 1C ice class.
The investment in the two ships totals around DKK 1.8bn
DFDS had fantastic results in the last quarter of 2017, and for the whole year. Especially noteworthy are the North Sea freight volumes, which went up 6%. The overall passenger volumes went up 1%.
For 2018, freight volumes, particularly un-accompanied units, are expected to grow on most routes. Passenger volumes are expected to be on level with 2017.
Some key figures:
Electric vehicles create a new challenge for the ferry industry, writes www.tu.no.
Drivers of electric cars would like to leave the ferry with full batteries. So far nobody offers this service but in this article DFDS and Stena Line are reported to work on solutions.
The big issue is safety. A car battery took fire on a DFDS ship in 2010, and since then the ferry industry had a very reluctant approach. However, both DFDS and Stena confirmed they are working on solutions to serve the customers’ needs.
When the temperature in a battery cell rises above a certain level, an unstoppable heat production will occur. A battery fire can be extinguished with water, but more water is needed than another fire. Also, getting the water to the very source of the fire is not easy.
TNormally, one DFDS cruise ferry is in Oslo and one in Copenhagen. Exceptionally both CROWN SEAWAYS and PEARL SEAWAYS were in Copenhagen, after the first returned from drydock.
Since 2009 DFDS has been hosting a Christmas lunch for homeless people on board PEARL SEAWAYS, while the ship is docked in Copenhagen.
Every year about 250-300 guests are boarding the ship to enjoy the grand Christmas buffet with beer, snaps and coffee. The crew is taking a day off to serve the guests. Before the guests leave the ship they get a gift bag and a pair of socks or gloves, knitted by a group of volunteers, something that is welcome on a cold winter day.
The event is made in close cooperation with We Shelter, an organization that has been doing social work for homeless and other vulnerable groups for more than 120 years.
DFDS reported a volume record on the Göteborg/Brevik – Ghent route, which was achieved during week 47, the last full week in November. But obviously, it didn’t take long to beat that.
Another record of cargo was shipped during week 48: exactly 55,001 lane meters were carried, which is 1,467 lane meters more than the week before.
Photo: North Sea Port
The first parts of the mega-block of the new DFDS 6,700 lane meter ro-ros are now visible in the building dock in Jinling, says DFDS. Until March the construction will be done in a temporary position because of another vessel. Once this vessel is launched, the mega-block will then be relocated to the correct position in the dock and the rest of the vessel erected.
DFDS has ordered four large ro-ro ships to service freight customers across the North Sea from 2019 and 2020.
January 2018 will see the introduction of a new buffet restaurant concept on board the two ferries of the DFDS Newcastle-Amsterdam route. Seven Seas Restaurant will be renamed Explorer’s Kitchen. It is still going to be an all-you-can-eat for breakfast and dinner, but there’ll be a range of new evening dishes for passengers to enjoy.
Tariffs have been changed too, with discounts of up to 34% when pre-booking.
Photo: Mike Louagie