The 14,021 GT, 147.4-meter-long double-ended ferry, with a capacity of 1,200 lane-metres and 140 passengers/drivers, was originally to be named FUTURA and was launched under that name. However, Scandlines later changed the name during the construction process to THE BALTIC WHALE, which is now the name under which the ferry is registered in its flag registry, the Danish International Ship Register (DIS).

The contract with Cemre Shipyard was signed in November 2021 with delivery planned for 2024. In the following period, the yard received several other orders for smaller ferries for Northern European operators - Torghatten, Caledonian MacBrayne, and Molslinjen - but encountered difficulties meeting contractual delivery deadlines. This was primarily attributed to a combination of the after-effects of the devastating earthquake in Turkey on 6 February 2023, as well as supply-chain market impacts caused by the war in Ukraine.

THE BALTIC WHALE is intended to operate fully electrically via a 10-MWh battery pack, replacing Scandlines’ current freight ferry, the 1981-built former Great Belt intercity-rail ferry KRONPRINS FREDERIK.

THE BALTIC WHALE will be able to charge in just 17 minutes in Rødbyhavn, Denmark, thanks to investment in a powerful 50 kV / 25 MW power cable and a new transformer station. An intelligent charging tower ensures that the ferry is automatically switched on, regardless of water levels and movements, in under 15 seconds.

A complete charging system has also been installed in Puttgarden, Germany, so that from the end of 2025, the ferry will be able to charge in just 12 minutes and operate emission-free in both directions with a crossing time of 45 minutes.

THE BALTIC WHALE is carrying out the delivery voyage using its three MTU 12V4000M35F-based gensets. The primary capacity on Scandlines’ Rødby–Puttgarden route is provided by the four double-ended ferries PRINSESSE BENEDIKTE, PRINS RICHARD, SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN, and DEUTSCHLAND.

© Shippax