March 2024:
- Passengers: 408,761 (↑14.9%)
- Cargo: 29,672 (↓8.9%)
- Vehicles: 54,205 (↓2.5%)
Q1 2024:
- Passengers: 1,102,738 (↑5.0%)
- Cargo: 84,950 (↓2.1%)
- Vehicles: 152,436 (↓3.3%)
Source: Tallink Grupp
The Supervisory Board of Tallink Grupp has approved changes to AS Tallink Grupp’s Management Board, accepting the resignation from the Management Board from Mrs Kadri Land, and appointing Ms Elise Nassar to the Management Board as a new member.
Source: Tallink Grupp
Tallink Grupp reports a strong profit of EUR 78.9 million for the year (EUR 13.9 million in 2022). During the year, Tallink Grupp managed to continue the steady path of recovery from the last four years of crises.
- +4.5% Passengers 5 705 600
- +2.6% Passenger vehicles 840 881
- -20.0% Cargo units 323 990
- +8.3% unaudited consolidated revenue EUR 835.3 million
- EBITDA also saw a significant increase to EUR 214.5 million (EUR 135.8 million in 2022).
- Tallink Grupp’s total investments in 2023 amounted to EUR 28.1 million (EUR 203.3 million in 2022, mainly relating to the new shuttle vessel MyStar).
- At the end of the 2023 financial year, the group’s total liquidity buffer (cash, cash equivalents and unused credit facilities) remained strong and amounted to EUR 116.9 million (EUR 249.9 million 31 December 2022).
- During the financial year 2023, Tallink Grupp repaid loans in the total amount of EUR 487.6 million, which includes refinancing of loans in the amount of EUR 298.0 million.
- Tallink Grupp and its subsidiaries contributed a total of EUR 76 million in various taxes to the state of Estonia budget.
- Tallink Grupp’s Management Board, with the approval of Tallink Grupp’s Supervisory Board, will propose paying a dividend of EUR 0.06 per share based on the 2023 financial results.
- As at 31 December 2023 Tallink Grupp had 38 894 shareholders and FDR-holders, of which 30 563 on Tallinn Stock Exchange and 8 331 on Helsinki Stock Exchange.
Outlook by Tallink Grupp’s CEO Paavo Nõgene
“In 2024 we will continue to focus on maintaining profitability while balancing the high and increasing costs of fuels and other products and services and the addition of new costs for the business, such as the emissions costs arising from shipping being included in the ETS scheme from 1 January 2024. As the climate crisis intensifies alongside the economic and geopolitical tensions, we are also increasing our efforts of searching for new technologies and solutions to play our part in tackling climate change. In 2023 we trialled a number of new technologies on board our vessels, all aimed at increasing energy efficiencies and reducing fuel consumption and thus also our emissions, but even greater collaboration and innovation is urgently needed to make a bigger difference. This is also one of our priorities for 2024.
Full details here.
Photo: MyStar, Tallink Grupp. Photo by Raul Mee.
Tallink Grupp signed the refinancing agreement of the company’s syndicated loan, as a result of which the company will repay several significant loans taken in recent years.
Tallink Grupp has consistently reduced the company’s debts in recent years, repaying various loans in the amount of 110 million euros in 2022 and in the amount of 175 million euros in 2023.
Tallink Grupp’s ISABELLE, long-term chartered by Bridgemans Services Group, is set to serve as on-site workforce accommodation for the Woodfibre LNG liquified natural gas export project near Squamish, BC, starting in spring 2024.
Read more on the Bridgemans Services website.
Five years ago, Baleària and Fred. Olsen Express started to jointly operate a maritime connection between Huelva and the Islands of Gran Canaria and Tenerife.
Baleària and Fred. Olsen offer three weekly departures between the ports of Huelva, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
The shipping companies have continued to operate with Ro-Pax MARIE CURIE, one of Baleària’s new generation vessels.
Baleària’s Director of Operations and Operations, David Fernández, stressed that “the figures show that the alliance for these routes is a guarantee of excellence for customers, both from the point of view of passengers, and for cargo, with a reliable and efficient service with tight delivery times. A third weekly departure also proves the commitment to the Canary Islands and the strategic importance of this market for the shipping company.”
Trends:
- Passenger statistics continue to show post-crisis stabilising despite the continuing economic challenges and price hikes, with comparable routes and vessels showing year-on-year improvements.
- More of “home market” customers return to the ships,
- Gradual return and increase in the number of Asian passengers. The number of Asian passengers has almost doubled in Q3 this year compared to last year, with travellers from South Korea, India, China, Japan and Taiwan topping the Asian passenger charts between July and September.
- The general economic situation in home markets is fragile, which is mostly evident in the cargo unit figures, but also has a wider impact on consumer behaviour.
Outlook
“While the summer did not see huge price hikes that would have a significant impact on our business, September has already brought a rather rapid marine fuel price increase, which we will unfortunately have to continue to pass on to our customers through the fuel surcharge, which we monitor and review regularly.”
Paavo Nõgene, CEO of Tallink Grupp
In August 2023 AS Tallink Grupp transported
576,455 passengers, which is a 4.4% decrease compared to August 2022.
The number of cargo units decreased by 26.0% to 26,281 units and the number of passenger vehicles by 2.6% to 86,794 units year-on-year.
FINLAND – SWEDEN (Helsinki-Stockholm and Turku-Stockholm)
The cruise ferry GALAXY I stopped operating on the Turku-Stockholm route in September 2022 due to a charter contract.
ESTONIA – FINLAND (Shuttle services of MYSTAR and MEGASTAR)
The cruise ferry SILJA EUROPA stopped operating on the Tallinn-Helsinki route in August 2022 due to a charter contract.
ESTONIA – SWEDEN (Tallinn-Stockholm and Paldiski-Kapellskär)
Tallink Grupp announced that it will bring back the popular cruise service to the Tallinn-Helsinki route and the company’s vessel VICTORIA I will start operating on the popular route between the two Nordic capitals from Thursday, 12 October 2023.
This means that the company is increasing its daily departures between the two capital cities again to pre-pandemic levels, offering 14 departures between Tallinn and Helsinki daily.
„Passenger numbers on the Tallinn-Helsinki route have shown steady growth and customer demand is there for the cruise product to return, so I am pleased that we are able to meet that demand.”
Paavo Nõgene, CEO of Tallink Grupp
Tallink Grupp’s Q2 (April- June) financial results are revealing a swing back into profit following the minor loss in Q1.
Q2
- -0.7% passengers 1,541,081 (1,552,174 in Q2 2022)
- -22% cargo units 85,359 (109,380 in Q2 2022).
- The reason for the decline: less vessels, operating 18% less trips across the routes, thus reducing the overall route capacity.
- +11.5% revenue EUR 229.7 million (EUR 206.0 million in Q2 2022).
- +138.7% EBITDA EUR 68.5 million (EUR 28.7 million in Q2 2022).
- The strong effort and positive results in many areas have resulted in a net profit of EUR 33.4 million (net loss of EUR 0.7 million in Q2 2022).
H1
The strong results of Q2 mean that the company has delivered a profitable first half year for the first time since 2015.
- +14% pax 2,590,858 (2,272,435 in H1 2022).
- -18.8% cargo units 172,091 (211,318 in H1 2022).
- In addition to fewer vessels in regular traffic in 2023 due to charters, there is one cargo vessel less operating on the company’s routes as the vessel SEA WIND was sold in spring 2022.
- +28.4% Revenue EUR 400.9 million (EUR 312.2 million in H1 2022).
- +439% EBITDA EUR 95.6 million (EUR 17.7 million in H1 2022).
- Net profit at the end of H1 2023 was EUR 28.0 million (EUR 40.7 million net loss at the end of H1 2022).
Commenting on the results of the first half year of 2023, Tallink Grupp’s CEO Paavo Nõgene said:
“The results of the first half of 2023 are proof that the decisions we have made over the last few years to speed up our recovery following the Covid crisis with vessel charters, were the right ones. The positive impact of the vessel charters is undeniable, especially at this time when the increased cost of living is still putting pressure on people’s travelling choices. Our current strategy to operate our regular routes with the most optimal number of vessels and charter out other vessels, is helping us on our road to recovery.”
“Our focus now is on maintaining profitability into the next two quarters of 2023 while continuing to reduce our debts accumulated over the crisis periods. The vessels we currently have operating on our four core routes are performing well with some room for growth should passenger numbers from further afield than our home markets see some increases in the year or so ahead. The short-term plan is to continue operating with the same business model of the last few years, with a mix of regular traffic and charter contracts, until such time when demand on our current key routes or elsewhere increases and warrants additional capacity.”