Polferries’ CEO relieved of his duties

State-owned Polferries operates a fleet of five ro-pax ferries, linking Poland with Sweden. © Christian Costa

Yesterday, 11 February 2021, the Supervisory Board of state-owned Polferries-Polish Baltic Shipping Co. (PZB) announced that Piotr Redmerski had been relieved of his post as CEO. Redmerski first joined Polferries as Financial Director in 2006, later becoming the company’s president and CEO. A successor hasn’t been appointed yet, but will be selected soon.

READ THE FULL STORY

Major hiccup in bids received for routes to Melilla

Trasmediterránea's CIUDAD AUTONOMA MELILLA is used for the current PSC to Melilla. © Frank Heine

Naviera Armas-Trasmediterránea, the current operator of the public service contract (PSC) between Malaga and Almeria to Melilla, has been unable to remedy errors in its renewal application, and as a result, has been eliminated from the contest for Route 2, which this year has added Motril to Almeria on the route to Melilla. Baleària, the other applicant for this route, won the route by default.

READ THE FULL STORY

Voyage charter for LIEKUT while heading for Down Under

LIEKUT will head for Australia via the African West Coast. © Peter Starenczak

Although chartered to Tasmanian operator SeaRoad for three years from March this year, Siem Car Carriers’ 4,076 lanemetre ro-ro LIEKUT has been chartered to NMT Shipping for a voyage from Europe to Namibia.

READ THE FULL STORY

Irish Ferries short term charters MEGA EXPRESS FOUR

MEGA EXPRESS FOUR is on her way to Dublin to take up a short-term charter with Irish Ferries. © Marc Ottini

Irish Ferries has confirmed to Shippax that it has short term chartered Corsica Ferries’ MEGA EXPRESS FOUR for drydock cover. The vessel left Vado Ligure (Savona) on 7 February and is expected to arrive in Dublin on 11 February.

READ THE FULL STORY

Space charter agreement between Stena Line and DFDS not renewed

Stena Line has no space charter agreement anymore on DFDS's Esbjerg-Immingham service. © Marc Ottini

Stena Line has not renewed the space charter agreement with DFDS on the Esbjerg-Immingham route. The DFDS service was marketed by Stena Line during the past ten years, yet it is no longer part of the Swedish operator’s network.

READ THE FULL STORY

Grimaldi gives more details about revised Adriatic operations

CORFÙ and FLORENCIA will serve the Ancona-Igoumenitsa route on a daily basis. © Grimaldi Lines

As Shippax reported earlier, Grimaldi will replace the Ancona-Igoumenitsa-Patras ro-pax ferries CRUISE EUROPA and CRUISE OLYMPIA by EUROPA PALACE and CRUISE BONARIA (to be replaced by ZEUS PALACE in late March) which will be dedicated to the Ancona-Patras service, with the Visentini Class FLORENCIA and CORFÙ serving Ancona-Igoumenitsa. The Neapolitan group has now given more details about the frequency and sailing times.

READ THE FULL STORY

Brand-new FODNES about to leave Poland for Norway

Remontowa Shipbuilding has handed over the LMG Marin-designed FODNES to Norled. © Marcin Koszalka – PORTALMORSKI.PL

Remontowa Shipbuilding in Gdansk has handed over the 114.4m long and 17.4m beam diesel-electric hybrid double-ender FODNES to Norled. The last vessel in a four-ship series built by Remontowa, FODNES will be introduced on the 15-minute Mannheller-Fodnes route, joining sister ship MANNHELLER.

READ THE FULL STORY

Financials

DFDS’s 2020 results impacted by COVID-19

DFDS’s full-year revenue in 2020 shrunk by 15.8% to DKK 13.97 billion (DKK 16.59 billion) with EBITDA decreasing by 24.8% to DKK 2,732 million (DKK 3,633 million). The fourth quarter saw a 6.2% revenue decrease to DKK 3,761 million (DKK 4,008 million) – EBITDA dropped by a marginal 0.2% to DKK 769 million (DKK 771 million).

Press Releases

These press release news are published “as is”, i.e. this is how we get it from the senders. If you want to have your relevant news published, please send it to news@shippax.se

Sunny outlook in the Mediterranean for DFDS

DFDS’ business in the Mediterranean grew two per cent on the same period last year.
This small growth is a positive sign given the global impact of Covid-19 in 2020. DFDS expects to continue this in 2021.

WFW advises Banco BPM on €28m facility to Grimaldi Euromed

Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) has advised Banco BPM S.p.A. (“Banco BPM”) on a €28m loan facility granted to Grimaldi Euromed S.p.A. (“Grimaldi Euromed”) to finance the acquisition of a new PCTC (Pure Car & Truck Carrier).
The new unit GRANDE TEXAS was delivered on 26 January 2021 and is the sixth of seven car carriers ordered by Grimaldi Euromed from the Yangfan shipyard in Zhoushan, China. With a gross tonnage of 65,148 tonnes, a transport capacity of approximately 7,600 CEUs (Car Equivalent Units) and a cruising speed of 19 knots, the Italian-flagged GRANDE TEXAS is one of the largest PCTC units on the market.

Smyril Line invests over EUR 13 million in a ferry retrofit

In collaboration with naval architects Hauschildt Marine and shipyard Fayard, Smyril Line’s ro-pax ship NORRÖNA has been retrofitted with more luxurious facilities.

Carnival Corporation & plc Announces Upsizing and Pricing of $3.5 Billion Senior Unsecured Notes due 2027

Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK) (the "Company") announced that Carnival Corporation (the "Corporation") has priced the private offerings of $3.5 billion aggregate principal amount of 5.75% senior unsecured notes due 2027 (the "Senior Unsecured Notes"). The aggregate principal amount of Senior Unsecured Notes to be issued was increased to $3.5 billion. The offering of the Senior Unsecured Notes is expected to close on February 16, 2021, subject to customary closing conditions.

Yara Marine Technologies drives towards shore power

While the EU parliament calls for an emission ban at berth, Yara Marine Technologies relaunch cold ironing to their green tech portfolio, partnering with NG3.

P&O Ferries supports freight drivers with free food, discounts and cabin upgrades

P&O Ferries announced the launch of a new initiative to support the wellbeing of freight drivers and raise awareness of their invaluable contribution to the economy. In recognition of the challenges freight drivers have experienced in recent months, particularly due to Covid-19 testing requirements, P&O is offering free food, discounts in onboard shops and cabin upgrades, so freight drivers are refreshed and refuelled.

ABB’s analytics and AI software can help ships improve efficiency, cut fuel consumption and reduce emissions

• Insights into ship’s operational data, amplified by Artificial Intelligence (AI) can help save up to 10 percent fuel and cut cost
• Unlocking the value of advanced analytics can increase vessel uptime and reduce essential service visits by up to 30 percent

DFDS: January volume report: Freight down 12% after Q4 stockbuilding reversed as expected

Ferry – freight: Total volumes in January 2021 were 13% below 2020 adjusted for structural route changes. Volumes for routes calling the UK were down 21% with volumes picking up towards the end of the month.

Ferry – passenger: Total number of passengers in January 2021 was 84% below 2020. The decrease reflects a continued negative impact from travel restrictions related to Covid-19 on the two cruise ferry routes and the Channel. In the Baltic Sea, passenger numbers were above 2020 driven by higher volumes on one route. 

Fosen Yard wins important project – chooses Elpro for installation of electrical equipment

Fosen Yard and Elpro have now signed the contract which makes Elpro responsible for the installation of electrical equipment for a Siem Group passenger ferry, provisionally called Newbuild 93. In a very difficult market for the shipbuilding industry, Fosen Yard has demonstrated competitive ability, adaptability and strength by winning the coveted contract. The yard says that suppliers such as Elpro are crucial with regard to the planning as well as the execution of the project.

VOW ASA: Vow ASA awarded 5.7-million-euro cruise ship contract with major European shipbuilder

Vow ASA has through its subsidiary Scanship been awarded a 5.7-million-euro contract with a major European shipyard for the delivery of two advanced wastewater purification systems.

Wärtsilä Hybrid Solution will minimise carbon footprint for new Canadian ferry

The technology group Wärtsilä’s delivery of its advanced hybrid solution will be for a new Ro-Ro ferry being built for the British Columbia Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure. The vessel is being built at the Western Pacific Marine shipyard, and when delivered will serve the Balfour – Kootenay Bay route across Kootenay Lake. The order with Wärtsilä was placed in January 2021.

Riga and Visby are new Viking Line destinations

During the summer of 2021, people will be able to sail with Viking Line from Helsinki to Riga, Visby and Mariehamn as the company adds new destinations to its range of cruises available. As usual, we offer many different types of programmes on board. In conjunction with their cruise, people can also book different activities for when they have arrived at their destination. For instance, in Riga passengers can take part in a tour of the city or make an excursion to Jurmala. In Visby, the programme includes a visit to the delightful summer world of Kneippbyn. People can meet Pippi Longstocking or splash about in the large water park there.

Traffic continues to flow smoothly through the Port of Dover post-Brexit transition

A month on since the end of the Brexit transition period, the Port of Dover is pleased to already be welcoming over 90% of the freight traffic volumes typical of this time of year following the significant stockpiling experienced before Christmas.

Fincantieri: dry dock works start on VIKING MARS

The keel laying of VIKING MARS, the eighth ocean cruise ship which Fincantieri is building for the shipowner Viking, took place at the shipyard in Ancona. The vessel will be delivered in 2022.