|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
          |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Latest Ferry NewsThe latest ferry news for December 2006 is below:
Corsica to extend ferry concessionDate: 19 Dec 2006Source: Lloyds List THE bitterly contested award of the public service concession for ferry services between the French mainland and the island of Corsica is likely be delayed for at least four months following last week’s decision by the French Council of State to annul the award procedure. The Corsican transport office said yesterday it would be proposing that the existing concession, which had been due to expire at the end of this month, be extended for four months to allow time for interested parties to submit new bids. The final decision concerning the timetable for the new round of bidding for the concession will be taken on Friday by the Corsican Assembly but the transport office said it considered that the new concession could come into force from May 1 next year. The office said it would not be changing the terms of the tender call or the concession specifications, given that they had not been criticised in last Friday’s decision by the Council of State, but would confine itself to inviting fresh bids. Since the council found that none of the bids submitted under the initial procedure was acceptable, the question now is to know how the three companies in competition for the concession are going to react. SNCM, which needs to win the concession to retain its new principal shareholders Butler Capital Partners and Veolia Transport, indicated that it would be making a new offer and appeared to be ready to consider a joint bid with CMN. The two traditional allies found themselves in competition after CMN opted not to bid with SNCM for the new seven-year concession. Instead, it submitted a bid for part of the concession on its own account and a second bid jointly with SNCM’s arch-rival Corsica Ferries for the whole concession. SNCM management board chairman Gerard Couturier said: “If, by necessity, we are obliged to go it alone, we will go it alone. But, if we find an alliance, we will have an alliance.” Asked if the company was ready to go into an alliance with CMN, he said: “Our hand has always been held out towards CMN.” CMN, which claimed with Corsica Ferries that the Corsican authorities had been showing favouritism towards SNCM, was more non- committal, however, saying that the alliance question would need “analysis and reflection” once the Corsican Assembly had made known its intentions with regard to the new round of tenders. The company was nevertheless jubilant at having escaped coming under SNCM control after the Paris court of appeal overturned a lower court ruling that existing majority shareholder STEF-TFE should give up control of the company to SNCM under the terms of a shareholder pact signed in 1992. The appeal court, which also gave its judgement on Friday, said Stef-TFE had been within its rights in withdrawing from the pact unilaterally earlier this year. Corsica Ferries, which has dethroned SNCM as the leading passenger carrier between the French mainland and Corsica, also hailed the Council of State’s decision, saying it had taken three judicial decisions to “bring down the Great Wall of China built to prevent the arrival of competitors” in the Corsican ferry market. Chief executive Pierre Mattei argued that the concession specifications should be revised, however, to ensure that the award procedure was carried out with maximum transparency. He argued, in particular, that the concession should be open to bids on a service-by-service basis so as to ensure that the Corsican authorities are able to choose the “best combination”. Long-running saga comes to end as GNV’s new owners take chargeDate: 18 Dec 2006Source: Lloyds List AFTER a dogged chase in which a Who’s Who of the Italian financial world featured as potential buyers, three private equity funds led by long-running favourite Investitori Associati have taken control of Genoa ferry company Grandi Navi Veloci. The deal will see London-based fund Permira sell off its 80% share in the company at a substantial profit after two and a half years of control and the Grimaldi family, led by GNV’s founder Aldo Grimaldi. reduce its stake from 20% to 13%. The value of the deal was not disclosed, though sources suggest it valued the company at close to €680m ($795m). Under the terms of the deal Investitori Associati takes a 59.5% stake in GNV, with fellow funds Gruppo De Agostini and Charme taking 17.5% and 8% respectively. Newly appointed managing director Silvano Cassano, a veteran of clothing giant Benetton, will take a 2% share. The reported valuation of GNV has startled the market, with some observers describing it as an unusually high price for a company with less-than-impressive profits operating an expensive fleet in an increasingly competitive market. GNV claimed earnings of €60m last year on revenues of €251m, and sources estimate growth in double digits for 2006, but the company does not discuss its debt load or annual interest payments. In defence of the price sources close to the company cite the value of its order book at a time when slots at shipyards capable of building high-quality ferries are at a premium. Grimaldi Holdings has four small ships now on order at the Nuovi Cantieri Apuania yard in Marina di Carrara and four more options available for a potential outlay of €450m. They will be chartered to GNV. The first of these 23,000 dwt vessels, with capacity for 400 passengers, 120 cars and 3,000 line metres of cargo, is due for delivery in January with the rest at six-month intervals thereafter. The new owners will also be counting on market growth. Italy’s geography makes it a natural source of business for the motorways of the sea but the sector remains relatively undeveloped. The future of state-subsidised giant Tirrenia was doubtless also a consideration, with the government pushing for a four-year extension of the subsidy regime permitted by the European Commission to 2012, and the private operators fierce in their opposition. Ferry operators both in Italy and outside are watching the situation closely, eager to cash in when the time comes. SNCM favourite for Corsica ferry serviceDate: 14 Dec 2006Source: Lloyds List FRENCH Mediterranean ferry operator SNCM has confirmed its position as the clear favourite to obtain the subsidised public service ferry concession for lines between the French mainland and the island of Corsica from January 1, writes Andrew Spurrier in Paris. The Corsican executive council is to recommend the Corsican assembly to accept the global offer made for the concession by SNCM in the report it will be submitting to it on December 22. It says in the report that SNCM’s offer, which, if it is accepted, will qualify the company for an annual subsidy of €94.75m ($125m), meets all the conditions set out in the tender invitation issued by the Corsican transport office and guarantees the interests of the Corsican authority, the CTC. It adds that competing partial offers submitted by SNCM’s rivals, Corsica Ferries and Compagnie Méridionale de Navigation, cannot be accepted for technical, legal and financial reasons. On Monday, following complaints from CMN and Corsica Ferries, the French competition council ordered SNCM to provide the Corsica transport office with detailed costings of its bid within 48 hours. SNCM said yesterday that it was in the process of replying to the council’s demand. The French council of state, France’s supreme administrative court, could also block the company’s bid. It is expected to rule on Friday on an appeal from Corsica Ferries against the rejection by a junior administrative court in October of its application to have the concession award procedure stopped. Changes planned for Northern Isles Ferry serviceDate: 7 Dec 2006Source: Shetland Marine News Northern Isles ferry operator NorthLink may reduce the number of crew sailing on their three ferries as part of a service organisation review. Company managers were adamant yesterday (Wednesday) that any redundancies would be voluntary. Managing director Bill Davidson and commercial director Gareth Crichton were in Shetland yesterday for a number of meetings with industry representatives, but also to brief the local authority on the company's plans for the next few years. They told a meeting of the council's environment and transport forum they were looking into a number of ways to re-organise manning patterns on board the vessels, which could result in some of the duties being transferred from crew to land based staff. There was also an ongoing re-allocation of jobs, Mr Crichton said, which would see the closure of the á la carte restaurant during winter months and the service moved to a dedicated corner in the main restaurant. They said this measure would make economic sense during the winter season when very few people used the á la carte service. Mr Davidson added that the change would not lead to an erosion of standards and was not the thin edge of the wedge, as suggested by council transport spokesman Gordon Mitchell. Assurances were given that the onboard reorganisation and reduction in crew would free up much needed additional cabins. Mr Crichton said the review was part of the service contract the company had with the Scottish Executive. "We are looking for a double benefit. Because it focuses on the customers we can provide services that generate additional revenues," he said. Mr Davidson added that the service review had no time limit and any job losses would not be through redundancies "at the moment". NorthLink is also in the process of finalising plans to build further cabin space during the next dry docking period in spring next year. Mr Davidson said he was unable to confirm whether the project was definitely going ahead as "a business case" had still to be made to the NorthLink board as well as to its bank. But he said that the cost for new cabins would not be met by the public purse. "The cabin project is well through. We are not there in terms that we can make an announcement about it, but I am very optimistic that we can do the project. We have still to wait until the last dots come into the row." They also told the meeting that the first prototypes of the new livestock transport container would arrive for tests in Shetland and Orkney in January next year. Mr Davidson said: "The prototypes will arrive for testing and we will have them here in Shetland and in Orkney. The vets will look at them, and they will be on the road with sheep and cattle in them. "Once the design is finalised we than go and do a production run of them with the aim to have them for use in September 07." They added that although NorthLink's passenger numbers were still rising, the strong growth of the first few years could not be repeated. And they expressed concern about how the new Air Discount Scheme would effect their business. Mr Crichton said: "ADS will have an impact over the next five to six years." NorthLink Ferries Ltd, a company owned by CalMac, took over the contract to provide the lifeline ferry service for the northern isles from the previous NorthLink company in summer this year. Dublin, Rosslare ferry services cancelled due to high windsDate: 7 Dec 2006Source: Belfast Telegraph A number of ferry services out of Dublin and Rosslare ports have been cancelled today as a result of stormy conditions. Winds of up to 120km/h have stranded three Irish Ferries vessels, but the Ulysses cruise ferry from Dublin to Holyhead is running on schedule. Gale-force winds and heavy rain are expected to continue in most area for the next few days, with the south and east of the country expected to be worst-affected. Forecasters are warning of possible flooding and falling debris. Cross Channel Ferry delays cause motorway jamsDate: 7 Dec 2006Source: BBC News High winds in the English Channel have led to ferry delays and a backlog of freight traffic on the M20 in Kent. Operation Stack, where part of the motorway is used as a lorry park, was brought in on Thursday evening for the fifth time this year. Two ferry operators cancelled crossings because of high winds. P&O vessels had difficulties docking. SeaFrance stopped day trip bookings until Monday. Strikes by crews in France added to the delays for SeaFrance and SpeedFerries. On the motorway, the coastbound carriageway was closed between junction 11 at Hythe and junction 12 at Folkestone with the area being used to manage freight. Police urged motorists to avoid the area and said local traffic was being diverted on to the A20. Coastbound drivers were warned to leave the motorway at junction 10 at Ashford, while London-bound traffic was still flowing. Battle lines drawn over Tirrenia subsidy extensionDate: 5 Dec 2006Source: Lloyds List THE battle lines are being drawn around Italian state-owned carrier Tirrenia, with efforts to extend the ferry company’s subsidy regime past the 2008 deadline set by the European Commission now the subject of animated discussion from parliament to company boardrooms to docks around the country. The debate ahead is unlikely to be civil. Already, maritime unions associated with the company have called a one-day strike for Friday in protest at the government’s failure immediately to back an extension of subsidies for four more years, until 2012. Meanwhile, transport officials from the Sardinia region, a major market for Tirrenia as for its private competitors, called last week for an end to subsidies and the opening up to competition of the island’s routings. Shipowners’ association Confitarma is keeping its powder dry, unsure as yet whether the measure to extend the subsidies has sufficient support within the government or in Parliament to pose a threat. But its members are less reserved. Industry patriarch Aldo Grimaldi is pressing his attack on Tirrenia on four separate fronts, accusing it of violating EC rulings and distorting competition to the detriment of his own Grandi Navi Veloci. Mr Grimaldi insists the subsidy regime is not his target, that he is interested only in stopping Tirrenia using public funds to compete illegally, specifically on the over-tonnaged Genoa-Porto Torres route. But his assault on the public company cannot but have an impact on the debate, as the EC is asked once again to consider the legitimacy of state aid to Tirrenia. Mr Grimaldi is an old foe of the company — he led the initial fight against its subsidies more than a decade ago — and with GNV under pressure in an increasingly competitive market, he has an additional incentive to keep up the chase. He is doing so with vigour. In Genoa, he has sued Tirrenia in civil court, alleging anti-competitive conduct and claiming damages; Tirrenia is trying to get the forum changed to Naples as a prelude to having the case thrown out. In Rome, Mr Grimaldi is pressing his case with the ministry of transport, reasoning that if Tirrenia is acting illegally, it can only do so with, at the very least, the passive acceptance of the government. Mr Grimaldi’s lawyers will shortly write to the ministry to ask why no new pricing schedule has been approved for the company since 2004. Later this month, they will also file a complaint with Italy’s competition authorities. And they have already complained to the EC, which in turn has sought clarification from the Italian government. Mr Grimaldi’s case includes several claims, among which are: that far from stabilising its service between Genoa and Porto Torres at 1994 levels as instructed by the EC, Tirrenia has put larger, faster ships into service on the route; that it has not increased prices in line with costs, relying on public subsidies to fill the gap; and that it has indulged in predatory pricing and granted large discounts and extravagant payment terms to key customers, increasing the risk of bad debt. Tirrenia’s filing in Genoa civil court last week reiterates the defence it has long made to such charges. It stresses the restraints and demands placed on it by its public service mission, as well the government’s role in setting tariffs, routings and deployments. More specifically, it also claims to have reduced capacity on the Genoa-Porto Torres route from 802,060 passengers to 482,044, a much bigger cut than required. The type of ship is irrelevant, it adds, since the EC decision requires only capacity reductions and makes no stipulations on the size, speed or quality of the ships deployed. As for its pricing and payments policies, it concedes to discounting, extending payments terms and not applying interest to payments due, but argues that it is within its rights in doing so. It also claims that 2004 tariffs are still in effect despite the significant impact of inflation on costs over the last two years, not because the company did not file new tariff schedules but because “the government saw no reason to change them.” The face-off between Tirrenia and GNV comes at a time of particular ferment in Italy’s ferry market. MSC-owned Snav, for instance is gradually expanding its fleet and extending its network of services up the Italian peninsula. Corsica Sardinia Ferries is bulking up. Vincenzo Onorato’s Moby is also on the rise, adding new ships and routings, and turning its sights on GNV as well as its old foe Tirrenia. Indeed, its arrival on the Genoa-Porto Torres route is bad news for both. And Grimaldi Naples is expanding both at home and abroad. The arrival on the scene of the private equity funds, both Italian and international, is only likely to accelerate a looming market shakeout, and in this regard all eyes are on Tirrenia. Flush with cash and eager to put it to work, the funds have already made an impact. In the last few months, Clessidra has snapped up 30% of Moby — more funds for expansion, notes Mr Onorato, insisting that he will retain his majority stake — for an undisclosed price. And a trio of funds are expected to close on December 14 on a deal to take control of GNV, for a king’s ransom. The standard modus operandi of the funds is to buy in, beef up their chosen investment and sell out fast at a substantial profit, just as Permira managed to impressive effect with GNV. The market may be a very different place by the time they are done. |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||
