Ferry News Archive
Latest Ferry News
The latest ferry news for June 2006 is below, please click on the title for the full story:SpeedFerries price increase ahead... Book while you canDate: 28 Jun 2006 Source: Directferries.co.ukDue to the continued high level of diesel fuel prices, SpeedFerries will be introducing a general price increase. Prices will remain at existing level until Tuesday 4 July 2006 to allow customers a final chance to secure tickets at current price. To book now before the increase, please visit our SpeedFerries page and select your details from the fare search menu. Alicante restarts ferry services to the Balearic Islands after 17 yearsDate: 27 Jun 2006 Source: Typically SpanishAlicante Port sees ferry services once again from today, 17 years after the last ferry left the port on a link to the Balearic Islands. Now a new fast ferry, operated by the Trasmediterránea company links Alicante to Palma and Ibiza. Passenger price is 130 - 155 € return and for taking the car the price rises to between 400 and 465 €. The new service follows the service to Algeria which started a year ago. For more information and booking, please visit our Trasmediterranea page and select the route from the fare search menu. Tallink EGM approves Silja acquisitionDate: 23 Jun 2006 Source: ShippaxA step towards the completion of Tallink’s acquisition of Silja Line was taken on Thursday, when a majority of Tallink shareholders at an Extraordinary General Meeting voted in favour of the deal. An overwhelming majority of the shareholders gave their support to the acquisition: 87,686,582 votes were in favour; 2,272 were against. 1,320 did not vote. The deal has still to be cleared by the competition authorities. At the same EGM, it was decided that the company’s Supervisory Board will have the possibility to increase Tallink’s share capital from the minimum EEK 1,365,000,000 to EEK 1,575,000,000 in two years time. Dover fast ferry deal waiting to exhale...Date: 22 Jun 2006 Source: Public BroadcastingToday is the deadline Euroferries Limited gave itself to close its purchase deal on Rochester's fast ferry boat. There's no word yet on whether they'll meet the deadline. City Communications Director Gary Walker says Euroferries staff are in town. He says the deal could be wrapped up today or tomorrow, but the actual date depends on how fast some final issues can be worked out. Complications with warranties and getting approvals from the English and French governments for the ferry's new service across the English Channel have produced delays. The deal was originally announced on May third. Silja sale sparks hate mailDate: 13 Jun 2006 Source: Lloyd's Register - FairplaySea Containers’ sale of the Finnish cruise ferry group Silja to the rapidly-expanding Estonian ferry company Tallink has unleashed a wave of emotion-laden comments in the Finnish media. Silja Line is one of the best known brands in Finland and Sweden. While some of the comments have taken a cool look at the deal, some take an openly hostile view of the transfer of Silja’s ownership to Estonia and the worst cases border on racism. Expressing a positive view, Rami Vilander wrote on the Internet shipping debate forum Ferries and Cruise Ships of the Baltic Sea: “I am happy that Tallink bought Silja. In the future [Silja’s] newbuildings perhaps will be built in Finland as Tallink has had the habit of doing.” Conversely, a writer only identifying himself as Mika T commented on the website of the Ilta-Sanomat tabloid that service on Silja Line was bound to fall, since travelling with Tallink was like being in a cattle truck. “Kikkare”, another commentator on the same site, said: “I will boycott the said ships as these Estonians have not yet got rid of their Soviet backgrounds”. Isle of Wight council explores new ferry port optionDate: 9 Jun 2006 Source: Isle of Wight County PressA major new IW Council study into cross-Solent ferries will explore whether the authority can help create a new route to the mainland. County Hall is adamant it will not itself set up an operation to rival Wightlink and Red Funnel but will look at whether any of its land holdings could become a ferry port. It will also explore whether mainland authorities would provide land and it is hoped that if such a route is found, either an existing ferry company or a newcomer would introduce services there. Cabinet spokesman David Pugh said it was too early to say where that route might be found. The study will be carried out over the coming year by the council's Policy Commission for the Economy, Tourism, Regeneration and Transport, which will make recommendations to the cabinet. Other key areas it will tackle are the levels of demand for cross-Solent travel and the suitability and locality of existing ports and the effect those factors have on tourism, the economy and residents. The study will not look at issues of competition nor the pros and cons of a fixed link. All cross-Solent operators will be invited to give evidence alongside transport and commercial bodies. Cllr Charles Hancock, who will lead the Island Ports Sustainability Study, said: "It is recognised this is an issue of considerable interest to an increasingly mobile Island population who wish to enjoy the benefits of living here while ensuring that the mainland is easily accessible and affordable. "We expect there to be a high level of interest in this enquiry and we look forward to receiving evidence from a wide range of interested parties before making recommendations for future council involvement on cross-Solent travel issues." The process will be discussed by the council's policy commission meeting on Wednesday at 6pm. P&O Ferries considers Bilbao optionsDate: 8 Jun 2006 Source: Lloyd's Register - FairplayP&O Ferries is considering its legal options after an appeal against a ruling that said the company received illegal state aid, was turned down by the European Court of Justice on 1 June. The new ruling from the court in Luxembourg confirms that P&O received subsidies from Basque institutions when it launched its Portsmouth-Bilbao line 15 years ago. "We need to consider the options before deciding how to proceed following the case; we have not had a chance to take advice," a P&O spokesman said. The new ruling says P&O will now have to return almost euro6M ($7.67M) of alleged illegal public subsidies. The ruling comes after P&O adjusted its deal with Basque institutions following an initial ruling against the ferry company. The legal case against P&O was brought forward in 1992 by rival ferry operator Brittany Ferries which had argued that the upfront purchase of 26,000 ferry tickets by Basque institutions had affected fair competition Tallink stops Germany-Estonia serviceDate: 7 Jun 2006 Source: Lloyds ListEstonian ferry operator Tallink has suffered a setback in its expansion strategy for the Baltic Sea region this week with the surprise termination of its newly launched passenger and cargo service between Germany and Estonia. Instead, Tallink will start a service between Finland and Germany. Earlier this year, Tallink acquired three Superfast brand ferries from Greece's Attica group, which were already employed in the Baltic Sea, marking the withdrawal of the Greek company from the region. The Estonian company decided to operate the ships between Finland and Estonian on the one hand and Germany and Estonia on the other. The latter service was stopped shortly after it had started. With the new link between Hanko/Finland and Rostock/Germany, Tallink returns to the previous Superfast schedule. SNCM goes privateDate: 6 Jun 2006 Source: Lloyd's Register - FairplayFrench ferry operator SNCM is now officially a private company after receiving partial approval from the European Commission for the move and after the company's board welcomed the arrival of private shareholders Veolia Transport and Butler Capital Partners. SNCM's new largest shareholder, private investment fund Butler Capital Partner, will hold 38% of the company. Transport specialist Veolia Transport, which will run SNCM on a day-to-day basis, will be the second largest shareholder with 28%. The French state will retain 25%, under control of the European Commission and for a limited period of time. Finally, 9% will go to the staff. In the longer term, it is expected that Butler and the state will withdraw, leaving Veolia in full command of the company. For its privatisation, SNCM is receiving a euro142.5M ($182.6M) cash injection from the state and will receive a further euro38M to cover social costs. Four hundred jobs will go without straight redundancies. The EC still has to approve this restructuring plan. SNCM is now hoping to win the concession for the public service delegation governing ferry routes between south France and Corsica. The award is due in mid-August and will see the winner start the new concession early in January 2007. French finance minister Thierry Breton welcomed the privatisation, which marks a new direction for the former public ferry line. £10M Boost as Isle of Wight gets new ferriesDate: 5 Jun 2006 Source: Isle of Wight TodayWightlink is to invest up to £10 million in two new ferries for its Yarmouth to Lymington route. It hopes the purpose-built vessels, which will be able to carry more cars than the existing ships on the route, will enter service around Easter 2008. The announcement came as the company revealed plans to improve ticket offices, catering and internet booking facilities. The company also announced a major change to its management structure and plans to revamp its corporate identity. Subjected to recent criticism over price increases since the company was bought by Australian investment bankers Macquarie, Wightlink said the announcement underlined its commitment to the Island. Funds had been found to carry out the investment through a re-financing of the company. "This programme of investment is good news for Wightlink, its staff and, most importantly, its customers," Wightlink said. "It is proof of our commitment to the Island in terms of ongoing investment in our routes and ferries in order to deliver the highest standard of customer care on cross-Solent ferry services." Most of that investment will go into the purchase of the two new Yarmouth-to-Lymington vessels for between £8million and £10million. The new ships will be able to carry more vehicles and passengers but will be similar in overall size to the existing 30-year-old Cenwulf, Cenred and Caedmon, two of which will be replaced. The fate of the two vessels to be replaced has not yet been decided. Wightlink said the new ferries would likely be run in line with the existing route timetables. "Plans are already underway to look at prospective yards to quote for the building of the vessels and naval architects and designers are being engaged," the company said. "It is hoped the successful yard will be contracted by early autumn this year," the company said. The management restructuring includes the appointment of a commercial director, general manager (operations), a marine superintendent, a retail operations manager and a customer services manager. Grimaldi boosts Tyrrhenian linksDate: 1 Jun 2006 Source: Lloyds ListGrimaldi Group of Naples has started a new route linking Civitavecchia, Catania and Valletta with the ro-pax vessel Euroferry Malta (formerly Louis-Dreyfus-owned, Martinoli-operated Massilia and Levantina Trasporti’s Linda). Two trips a week have been scheduled, although the Italian group has not ruled out more sailings. The vessel, built at Visentini in 1995 with a capacity of 150 trailers, 400 cars and 600 passengers, joins the ro-ro Eurocargo Valencia, which is already in service on the route from Catania to Malta, thereby boosting frequency on this service to four trips a week. The introduction of the Euroferry Malta also allows Grimaldi to offer two departures a week on the Catania-Genoa link. SNCM heads for the private sectorDate: 1 Jun 2006 Source: Lloyds ListState-controlled French Mediterranean ferry operator SNCM is set to pass into private sector control today following yesterday’s approval by the European Commission of its proposed takeover by Butler Capital Partners and Veolia Transport, writes Andrew Spurrier in Paris . The company’s existing board is due to approve the takeover, which has just been authorised by French government decree, at a meeting this morning and an SNCM spokesman said the new management team would be taking control immediately afterwards. Operational management will be in the hands of Veolia Transport, which will have a 28% stake in SNCM alongside investment company Butler Capital Partners, which will be leading shareholder with 38%. Veolia has already made clear, however, that it expects to become the majority shareholder in the company, notably via the expected withdrawal of Butler Capital Partners after five years. Gérard Couturier, formerly regional director of Veolia Transport, is to become head of SNCM’s new management board, replacing existing chief executive and former head of the port of Dunkirk authority Bruno Vergobbi. The French state is to keep a 25% stake in SNCM’s capital, while the company’s employees have been allocated 9%. Stena cuts back on HSS sailingsDate: 1 Jun 2006 Source: Lloyds ListStena Line has cutback on the sailings of the HSS Discovery on the Harwich, UK-Hook of Holland, Netherlands route and the HSS Explorer which links Holyhead, UK with Dun Laoghaire, Ireland. On the North Sea route a normal schedule of two round trips a day will be maintained on Friday-Sunday but on Monday and Thursday there will three crossings a day and two each on Tuesday and Wednesday between October and early December. “This is the first action coming out of the fleet review in response to the continuing high oil prices,” a Stena Line spokesman told Fairplay. “It is likely these will stay.” He indicated that other measures were being taken for the Belfast HSS service, such as bunkering changes that have reduced fuel consumption by around 5% and leaving early and travelling at slower speed but still arriving on time. He added that “other changes will be coming in the future such as the two new ships for the Killinghome service, the first of which should be in service in July.” Brittany Ferries' flagship vessel to set sail againDate: 1 Jun 2006 Source: BBC NewsBrittany Ferries' flagship vessel which was damaged by a freak wave last Sunday returned to service on Friday with refurbishment still under way. The £100m "superferry" Pont-Aven is sailing from Plymouth to Roscoff with 1,330 passengers on board. The 41,700-tonne vessel, which came into service in March 2004, was damaged during a voyage from Plymouth to Santander in northern Spain. A 40ft wave off the French coast broke windows and flooded cabins. New carpets The ferry diverted to Roscoff to let passengers off before sailing for repairs at the French port of Brest. She arrived in Plymouth on Friday morning ready for the afternoon voyage. Sunday's wave smashed a number of windows on the vessel and sea water damage affected 170 cabins, Brittany Ferries spokesman Stephen Tuckwell said. Most of them are back in service, but work will continue during Friday's voyage on drying some out and laying new carpets. Speedferries OnlineDate: 1 Jun 2006 Source: Directferries.co.ukWe are pleased to announce that we are the first agent to offer SpeedFerries tickets online and in real time. SpeedFerries is a low cost ferry operator which started in 2004, operating one route between Dover in England and Boulogne in France. For more information and booking, please visit our Speed Ferries page. |
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