Shippax Newsletter– week 13
HYDRA now in operation as the world's first liquid hydrogen powered ferry
HYDRA with the white hydrogen tank visible. The steam is water steam © Norled
Norled’s 2021-delivered HYDRA is now in operation on its triangular route between Hjelmeland-Spikavik-Nesvik as the world's first zero-emission liquid hydrogen powered ferry. In addition to the technology development, a great deal of work has also been done to develop rules and regulations to enable Norwegian passenger ships to run on hydrogen.
HYDRA is built to a design from LMG Marin. It is 82.4m long and can carry up to 300 passengers and 80 cars. It will be able to reach a speed of nine knots with fuel cells of 2 x 200kW and generators of 2 x 440kW, which will power two Schottel thrusters. The ferry is equipped with an 80m3 capacity tank for the storage of hydrogen.
Attica Group 2022 results
AERO 1, 2 and 3 in Piraeus © George Giannakis
Attica Group had revenue in 2022 of EUR 530 million (EUR 348 million), while EBITDA ended at EUR 58 million (EUR 42 million). Consolidated profit after taxes amounted to EUR 17 million (EUR -13 in 2021).
Attica Group’s traffic volumes, compared to 2021, increased by 38% in passengers, by 16% in private vehicles and by 11% in freight units. The number of sailings increased by 28.6% compared to 2021.
Norsepower secures EUR 28 million from investors to scale up
COPENHAGEN Norsepower Rotor Sail installed © Scandlines
Norsepower Oy Ltd., provider of mechanical sails for large ships, has successfully secured EUR 28 million in its latest Series C fundraising round.
The Norsepower Rotor Sail™ is a modernised version of the Flettner rotor. The Norsepower Rotor Sail™ uses a minimal amount of the ship’s electric power to rotate cylinder-shaped rotors on the ship’s deck. Rotation together with wind generates powerful thrust – saving fuel and reducing emissions.
Transtejo received the first of 10 new electric ferries from Astilleros Gondán shipyard
© Astilleros Gondán
The first of 10 new, all-electric ferries has been delivered to Transtejo from the Astilleros Gondán shipyard. The 40-metre, 540-passenger vessels will offer emission-free commuter services along Lisbon’s Tagus River in Portugal and will replace a fleet of older fossil fuel-burning ferries.
The new ferries will cut about 6,500 tonnes in CO2 emissions along the Tagus river every year – equivalent to the emissions of 1,400 passenger cars.
The Trelleborg-Sassnitz route with FRS Baltic starts on 1 April
Port of Trelleborg is welcoming FRS Baltic as a new customer in the port, and on 1 April the Trelleborg-Sassnitz route will be launched with the high-speed catamaran SKÅNE JET.
SKÅNE JET can carry more than 600 passengers and 200 vehicles in just 2.5 hours and is thus the fastest connection by sea from Sweden to Germany. FRS Baltic will offer day trips to Bordershop during April-October 2023, but also night departures during the summer months.
Norwegian transport company Torghatten appoints new CEO
Torghatten AS announced the appointment of Jan Volsdal (48) as its new CEO. Volsdal is currently CEO of Nobina Norway, the largest public transport company in the Nordics. He will start no later than 1 October.
Torghatten has an annual turnover of around NOK 3 billion and about 1,300 employees. The company is headquartered in Brønnøysund and Trondheim. Torghatten Nord, the group’s largest company, is operated from Tromsø.
Wärtsilä launches world-first radical derating solution for two-stroke engines
Wärtsilä has introduced a new radical derating retrofit solution – Wärtsilä Fit4Power - to extend the emissions-compliant lifetime of merchant vessels by providing the existing two-stroke fleet with leaner, healthier and more optimised engines.
Attica Group announced acquisition of CLEMENTINE from CLdN
CLEMENTINE © Frank Lose
Attica Holdings S.A. (Attica Group) announced the agreement for the acquisition of the
Ro-ro vessel CLEMENTINE from CLdN for a cash consideration of EUR 13.4 million in total.
The vessel, built in 1997, has overall length of 162.49 meters, gross tonnage of 23,986, and carrying capacity of 2,307 lane meters or 160 trailers. Moreover, the vessel has an additional capacity for 458 cars in dedicated garages.
The delivery of the vessel is scheduled to take place in the summer 2023.
Carnival Corporation Q1 2023 financials
Revenue in the first quarter of 2023 was USD 4.4 billion, representing 95% of 2019 levels. Adjusted EBITDA was USD 382 million (USD -962 million), U.S. GAAP net loss of USD 693 million (USD -1.89 billion).
The company experienced the highest booking volumes for any quarter in its history, breaking booking records for both the North America and Australia and Europe segments.
Total customer deposits reached a first quarter record of USD 5.7 billion (as of 28 February 2023), surpassing the previous first quarter record of USD 4.9 billion (as of 28 February 2019) by 16%.
Gotlandsbolaget buys cruise ship BIRKA STOCKHOLM
BIRKA STOCKHOLM has been laid-up in Mariehamn since March 2020 © Jukka Huotari
Gotlandsbolaget has bought the 2004-built BIRKA STOCKHOLM from Rederiaktiebolaget Eckerö for approximately EUR 38 million. The vessel will be used in traffic between Stockholm, Mariehamn and Visby.
The plan is for the business to start in the spring of 2024, and the work to develop the organization and offer will begin immediately.
Baleària charters TT-Line’s TOM SAWYER, while RUSADIR sails from Gdansk to Malaga to start her charter
RUSADIR © Baleària
Busy times for Spanish ferry operator Baleària as its gears up service for the forthcoming hectic summer period. Baleària has chartered TT-Line’s ro-pax ferry TOM SAWYER for this year’s summer season. Meanwhile, another chartered vessel, the newbuilding ro-pax ferry RUSADIR, formerly the HONFLEUR building for Brittany Ferries, has left Gdansk for Malaga to take up her charter with the Spanish operator.
The MEYER Group and Damen Shiprepair & Conversion sign cooperation agreement
The MEYER Group and the Dutch Shiprepair company Damen Shiprepair & Conversion (DSC) have signed a cooperation agreement. MEYER RE will now work more closely with DSC.
"Thanks to the cooperation with the family-owned, Dutch company Damen Ship Repair & Conversion Holding BV, we are moving even closer to our customers by securing dock capacity and manpower for our customers worldwide," says Alexander W. Höfling, Managing Director of MEYER RE.
Coal-fired ferry BADGER celebrate 70 years of crossing Lake Michigan
BADGER © Lake Michigan Carferry
The coal-fired BADGER celebrate 70 years of services across Lake Michigan. BADGER can carry 600 passengers and 120 vehicles and is part of the US’ National Historic Landmarks.
BADGER will return to its annual seasonal service linking Manitowoc, Wisconsin with Ludington, Michigan, a four hour crossing, from May to October.
Holland Norway Lines announces solution from April for port situation in Eemshaven – relocates its sailings to Germany
ROMANTIKA is chartered from Tallink Grupp © Tim Kooren
Holland Norway Lines has found a solution to the recent challenges in Eemshaven and announces that the sailing schedule for the spring and summer season is guaranteed. While it for the short term will sail from Cuxhaven, the company aims to re-locate its operations to Emden before the high season.
Chantier Davie Canada Inc. enters exclusive process for potential purchase of assets of Helsinki Shipyard Oy
Chantier Davie Canada Inc. (Davie) announced the exercise of its exclusive option to purchase the assets of Finland’s Helsinki Shipyard Oy (HSO).
Exercising the option to purchase does not mean an acquisition is completed. It is subject to the successful execution of thorough due diligence, including financial, regulatory and legal considerations, as well as final decision making by Davie.
Baleària’s electric 'ferry' CAP DE BARBARIA successfully performs the first sea trials in Vigo
Baleària and the Armon de Vigo shipyard have successfully carried out the first sea trials of the CAP DE BARBARIA, the first electric passenger and cargo ferry in Spain with zero emissions in approaches and stays in port.
Once the operating conditions of the ship have been verified, both in terms of speed and behavior at sea, Baleària expects to receive the ship in mid-May.
Hurtigruten Norway’s Sea Zero project enters next phase to launch zero emission ship by 2030
Hurtigruten Norway, which is working towards its first zero emission ship by 2030, has kicked off an innovative research project in partnership with research institute SINTEF and 12 maritime partners. The new consortium is dedicated to developing innovative, zero-emission solutions for the future of passenger ships. Based on cutting-edge research, the partners aim to create the most energy-efficient and sustainable cruise ship ever built by 2030.
CARNIVAL VENEZIA officially joins the Carnival Cruise Line fleet
COSTA VENEZIA © Costa Crociere
Transitioning from sister line Costa, CARNIVAL VENEZIA has officially joined the Carnival Cruise Line fleet. In Cadiz, Spain, Costa Captain Tihomir Muzic handed over the ship to Carnival Captain Claudio Cupisti, with additional leadership team members from both lines in attendance.
Candela raises USD 20m to bring its electric hydrofoil vessel to mass production
Candela P-12 Shuttle
Swedish tech company Candela’s raised a SEK 210 million (USD 20m) investment, co-led by EQT Ventures and investor duo Joel Eklund (Fosielund Holding AB) and Svante Nilo Bengtsson (Marknadspotential AB), with participation from Ocean Zero LLC, among others.
The funds will be used to bring Candela’s foiling 30-passenger ferry Candela P-12 Shuttle to mass production in the company’s new Stockholm factory.
More details released on the 12-ship Liberty Lines order
Italian ferry operator Liberty Lines ordered 12 38-metre hybrid monohull passenger ferries from Incat Crowther. The vessels will offer a flexible hybrid drivetrain and will have the ability to enter and leave ports at speeds up to 8 knots in zero-emission mode. With construction underway at Astilleros Armon’s shipyard in Spain, delivery of the vessels is expected to take place between 2023 and 2026.
Each vessel will be capable of a speed of 30 knots and can accommodate 251 passengers.
Weak Swedish krona causes more Danes to sail across the Kattegat
STENA NAUTICA © Stena Line
Stena Line reports a 30 percent increase in the number of bookings for the winter holidays compared to last year. Stena Line is now looking forward to spring, where the company is already seeing a slight increase in bookings on the two routes Frederikshavn-Gøteborg and Grenå-Halmstad.
Channel ports and DFDS join forces to decarbonise cross-channel transport
Seizing on the recent political declaration by the French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, climate neutral cross-Channel transportation moved a step closer in the last week. The Channel ports and ferry operator DFDS signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaborate on decarbonising maritime traffic on the Dover Straits.
Stena Line and Anglesey County Council freeport bid successful
Stena Line and Isle of Anglesey County Council’s joint bid to establish a Freeport in Holyhead has been successful. The Freeport status was granted by the UK and Welsh Governments, marking a significant economic boost to North Wales.
Anglesey will now benefit from Freeport status where simplified customs and trade rules will apply, providing greater incentives for investment and trade. In future, goods entering Anglesey Freeport will not be subject to the UK’s usual tax and customs regime, supporting long-term business investment, and boosting the prosperity of Anglesey and North Wales.
Most read
Secure your seat and book now! (Upd.8 Jan)
jan 08 2026
VIKING GLORY to make evening voyages from Turku when VIKING GRACE is dry-docked
dec 29 2025
Scottish government to nationalise Ardrossan Harbour and carry out major upgrading programme to be able to dock new CalMac ferries
jan 09 2026
EXPRESS 5 to sail more in 2026
dec 29 2025
Brittany Ferries secure prime 8:15am slot at Port of St Malo
dec 29 2025
Marine Atlantic charters A NEPITA from Stena RoRo
jan 07 2026
Indonesian ferry wrecked in the Sunda Strait
jan 08 2026
New fully electric ferry for Scandlines was named
jan 08 2026
