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Tag: Scandlines | Ferry Shipping News

Sep 10
0

Border Restrictions Halve International Ferry Travel from Denmark

By | 2020 Newsletter week 37 | No Comments

Organisation Danish Shipping (Danske Rederier) has calculated that the total number of passengers for Scandlines, Fjord Line, ForSea and DFDS in June, July and August has largely been halved compared to the same period last year.

“The bad summer comes on top of a lost spring, and it would be naive to think that Danes, Germans, Swedes or Norwegians will start traveling as usual in the coming months. The situation at the borders is completely unpredictable, so the shipping companies are facing some challenging months, ”says Jacob K. Clasen, Deputy CEO.

At Scandlines, CEO Søren Poulsgaard Jensen believes that it is the border closure in particular that caused an impact.

Like other Danish ferry companies, Scandlines has used the government’s help packages to send employees home for salary compensation and help to cover fixed expenses. But the bad summer will still cost jobs in the shipping company, says Søren Poulsgaard Jensen to Søfart.

Jul 23
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Scandlines Confirms Its Role as Provider of Essential and Green Infrastructure

By | 2020 Newsletter week 30 | No Comments

The hybrid ferry COPENHAGEN, which runs between Rostock and Gedser, was retrofitted in May 2020 with a 30m high rotor sail from Norsepower Oy Ltd.

“By installing the rotor sail, CO2 emissions can be reduced by an estimated 4-5% without affecting the speed and travel time,” reports Heiko Kähler, Managing Director of Scandlines Deutschland GmbH.

With the green investments, Scandlines was already able to demonstrate stable and solid economic performance in the 2019 operating result and it is assumed that this will also benefit the business.

In the first months of 2020, business was still relatively stable, but the outbreak of COVID-19 within Europe and the subsequent travel restrictions led to a sharp decline in passenger traffic. “To date, we have already recorded a loss of more than 70,000 cars on the Rostock-Gedser route and we expect that the traffic figures will also be negatively affected by the Corona crisis for the rest of the year,” said Heiko Kähler.

Even during the Corona crisis, Scandlines continued to operate on both the Puttgarden-Rødby and Rostock-Gedser routes in order to serve freight customers and thus ensure critical supply chains On Rostock-Gedser Scandlines transported 90% of the truck volumes compared to the previous year.

Although Scandlines is optimistic, the outbreak of COVID-19 is expected to have a significant negative impact on traffic and economic results this year.

Jun 11
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Scandlines: The Blue Border Between Germany And Denmark Reopens

By | 2020 Newsletter week 24 | No Comments

After 13 weeks during which the borders have only been open for transportation of goods or persons with a worthy purpose to cross the border, all borders between Germany and Denmark reopen on June 15 – and that of course includes the blue border, where Scandlines operates.

Scandlines’ shops on board and BorderShop Puttgarden will also open on June 15, whereas BorderShop Rostock has been open since June 2. It is of course possible to get something to eat and drink on board all ferries, where two out of three options are open.

”Although we have been able to maintain part of our freight traffic, the lockdown will have a considerable impact on our bottom line. We expect that the remainder of 2020 will be affected by the crisis and therefore we work hard to alleviate the effect of keeping the operation running with much lower income for several months,” says Søren Poulsgaard Jensen.

Apr 30
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FERRY FINANCE

By | 2020 Newsletter week 18 | No Comments

Scandlines 2019: Solid Results Despite Traffic Decline

Scandlines says its operational efficiency was strong, and the group’s two ferry routes completed more than 41,500 departures and transported 7.2 million passengers.

Soft economic indicators in Sweden and Germany resulted in a slight drop in traffic volume.

In the meanwhile, the company continued to build a more competitive business through investing in green initiatives and further strengthening the group’s financing.

Revenue from the two ferry routes was unchanged at EUR 352 million despite a moderate decline across traffic segments following years of growth in the freight business in particular. BorderShop revenue saw a minor decline to EUR 124 million (2018: EUR 125 million) as leisure travel declined slightly and fewer Swedes visited the group’s BorderShops due to the weak Swedish currency.

Group profitability remained steady in 2019 as Scandlines generated profit from ordinary activities (recurring EBITDA) of EUR 188 million (2018: EUR 191 million) corresponding to an unchanged recurring EBITDA margin of 40 percent. The solid profitability level was secured mainly by means of cost control measures compensating for the lower traffic volumes during the year.

Scandlines continues to see potential for improvement in the coming years as efforts continue to optimise and develop the business.

Download the annual report via this URL
Nov 21
0

Scandlines Hybrid Ferry Copenhagen Soon with Wind Power

By | 2019 Newsletter week 47 | No Comments

The preparatory work for the installation of the rotor sail on the hybrid ferry COPENHAGEN was successfully completed during the planned shipyard stay in autumn 2019.

A steel foundation and cables were laid to prepare the installation of the rotor sail, scheduled for the second quarter of 2020. In addition, a new mast was mounted, as the stern top light must be placed in front of the rotor sail.

The installation of the rotor sail will reduce Scandlines’ CO2 emissions from its ferry by four to five percent.

Aug 16
0

FERRY SHIPPING

By | 2019 Newsletter week 33 | No Comments

Scandlines Installs Norsepower’s Rotor Sail Solution On Hybrid Ferry

Scandlines has signed an agreement to install Norsepower’s Rotor Sail Solution on board the COPENHAGEN, a hybrid ro-pax sailing between Gedser and Rostock.

Since 2013, Scandlines has invested more than EUR 300 million in building and retrofitting ferries from conventional diesel-driven to hybrid ferries. With the addition of Norsepower’s technology, the vessel will further reduce its emissions.

The route between Gedser to the north and Rostock to the south is almost perpendicular to the prevailing wind from west giving Scandlines favourable conditions for using Rotor Sails on the ferry crossing.

Preparations for the retrofit will take place in November 2019 with the installation scheduled for Q2 2020. The ferry is set to be retrofitted with one large-sized Norsepower Rotor Sail unit that is 30m in height and 5m in diameter.

NABU, the German Nature and Biodiversity Conservation Union, is pleased with Scandlines’ decision to further reduce CO2 emission:

Jul 11
0

Flettner Rotors For Scandlines Ships On Puttgarden-Rødby

By | 2019 Newsletter week 28 | No Comments

Scandlines is continuing to invest in green technology.

All 16 thrusters on Scandlines’ hybrid Puttgarden-Rødby route will be replaced with new thrusters. The EUR 13 million investment will reduce underwater noise and vibration caused by the ferries, for the benefit of maritime life in the Fehmarnbelt region. In addition, the more homogeneous flow of water during navigation reduces emissions.

On the route Rostock-Gedser, Scandlines has partnered up with Rostock Port GmbH and the Fraunhofer Institute of the University of Rostock, for a project funded by the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI). The aim is to make the loading processes of the hybrid ferries more efficient, in order to keep the speed and associated emissions during the sea passage as low as possible.

There are also (earlier announced) plans to mount Flettner rotor sails on the hybrid ferries of the Rostock-Gedser line, BERLIN and COPENHAGEN.

Scandlines’ blue print of its business plan foresees a future with zero emissions.

Jul 11
0

Scandlines Is Ready For The Busy Summer

By | 2019 Newsletter week 28 | No Comments

Scandlines is doing well. Last year, it was especially cargo that saw an increase, 11% on Rostock-Gedser and 5% on Puttgarden-Rødby.
The two hybrid ferries on the Rostock-Gedser route also showed a solid result – in the summer they carried over 16,000 passengers a day for the first time.

As usual, the shipping company’s first half of 2019 was stable, although truck volumes were not quite up to the level of previous year.
In passenger car traffic, Scandlines slightly exceeded the previous year’s figures.

May 09
0

FERRY SHIPPING

By | 2019 newsletter week 19 | No Comments

Scandlines Files a Lawsuit Against the Plan Approval for the Construction of the Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link

Scandlines filed a lawsuit against the “plan approval” decision for the construction of the Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link at the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig (8 May).

In the Federal Republic of Germany, the “plan approval” is a special administrative procedure to be carried out on the permissibility of significant infrastructure projects.

Despite numerous adjustments to the plan documents in the course of the planning approval procedure, a large number of planning deficits have still not been remedied. Some of these unresolved issues have a direct negative impact on Scandlines’ ferry and business operations.

“After extensive examination of the documents established by the decision of 31 January 2019 we came to the conclusion that this legal step is inevitable. Scandlines will continue to operate after the tunnel opening. In the future, we want to continue to offer our customers the same high-quality ferry service we have been offering for over 55 years, “says Søren Poulsgaard Jensen, Scandlines’ CEO.

While the Danish project promoter denies the possibilities of a ferry operation parallel to the tunnel, an expert report commissioned by the planning approval authority comes to a completely different conclusion. This will continue to attribute 40% of the roadside freight traffic to the ferry line – plus a significant number of passengers.

The prerequisite for this, however, is fair and balanced tunnel planning, which also takes into account the legitimate interests of Scandlines.