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2019 Newsletter week 46

Nov 14
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EXTRA NEWS

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Brittany Ferries and Columbia Threadneedle Investments reach agreement to acquire Condor Ferries from Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets

Brittany Ferries, in consortium with the Columbia Threadneedle European Sustainable Infrastructure Fund (ESIF), has reached an agreement to acquire 100 percent of Condor Ferries from Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA).

Contracts have been signed and the deal is expected to be executed following scrutiny by relevant regulatory authorities. Brittany Ferries will hold a minority stake.

Condor Ferries is an operator of lifeline freight and passenger ferry services. Each year, Condor Ferries carries approximately 1 million passengers, 200,000 passenger vehicles, and over 900,000 freight lane meters between Guernsey, Jersey, the United Kingdom, and the Port of St. Malo in France.

Brittany Ferries began operations in 1973. Today its fleet includes twelve ships connecting France, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Spain. It operates from three ports in the UK, Portsmouth, Poole and Plymouth and carries around 2.5 million passengers every year, as well as 210,000 freight units.

ESIF is a new open-ended, evergreen fund that invests in European mid-market equity assets, managed by leading global asset management group Columbia Threadneedle Investments.

Nov 14
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TOP STORY

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“Ferry Industry, Do Not Miss The Once-In-A Generation Opportunity“

Direct Ferries announced the winners of the 2019 Direct Ferry partner awards at a gala dinner in the NED hotel in London.

Sean Cornwell –Direct Ferries CEO– said “We were delighted to host so many of our key partners in one place to celebrate the ferry industry and to showcase Direct ferries commitment to our partners and the wider ferry industry.

Sean used his keynote address to highlight the once in a generation opportunity the ferry industry has, to position itself as a greener alternative to air travel. He said “We are in a climate emergency and there is a group of travellers that are now looking for more environmentally friendly ways to travel and ferries have a unique opportunity to attract these customers.

“To show our commitment, we have partnered with Climate Perks, a charitable initiative asking employers to offer employees paid journey days if they travel by rail or sail, rather than fly.”

The awards were based around customer experience, strength and quality of the technical integration and API offered and growth on the Direct Ferries platform. The Operator of the Year Award, won by Fred Olsen Express, represents outstanding performance and strength across all of those categories.

The winners were:

  • Operator of the Year| Fred Olsen Express
  • Fastest Growing operator >30,000 passengers| Seajets
  • Fastest Growing operator <30,000 passengers| Interislander
  • Fastest Growing operator, On board less than 24 months| 2Go Travel
  • Best overall customer experience (voted by Direct Ferries Customers) – Color Line
  • Best Operator Technology| Brittany Ferries
  • Highest Customer rated vessel| Megastar, Tallink Silja

Direct Ferries is the world’s largest ferry demand platform and online travel agent. Five million passengers book through the platform annually across ~3,500 routes and ~250 operators globally.

Nov 14
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FERRY SHIPPING

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Project partners from 13 EU Member States investigate cost-efficient measures to mitigate the risk from ro-ro space fires. The European Commission invests €12 million to solve this international maritime fire safety challenge.

The name of the project is LASH FIRE (Legislative Assessment for Safety Hazards of Fire and Innovations in RoRo ship Environment)

The consortium is coordinated by RISE Research Institutes of Sweden and comprises 26 partners from 13 Member States of the European Union, including industry partners, research institutes, universities, regulatory bodies, trade associations and experts in communication and external relations. LASH FIRE will provide a basis for the revision of international maritime regulations and gives European industry knowledge to build safer and more competitive ships for sustainable transport.

Source: LASH FIRE
Nov 14
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Fred. Olsen Express And Baleària Introduce Newbuilding On The Joint Canary Islands – Huelva Route

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Fred Olsen Express and Baleària celebrate one year on the route between the Canary Islands and Huelva with the incorporation, on November 17, of LNG-powered RoPax MARIE CURIE. This Visentini-built ferry was delivered last July.

During the first year of the joint venture, 155 crossings have been performed, increasing the links between the Canary Islands and the Peninsula by 73%.

Nov 14
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FinFerries Ordered A Hybrid Ferry In Poland

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Polish Crist Shipyard has been selected by FinFerries to build a new ferry for the route between Åland and Föglö.
The yard previously built ELEKTRA. More than 20 yards were shortlisted.

The environmentally friendly ferry will operate on the Föglö route, which is tendered by the Åland Provincial Government. The ferry will be operated by Ansgar Ab, Åland’s associated company.

The new ferry will be powered primarily by battery packs (loaded by shore power) and backed up by diesel generators. The technology is provided by Siemens

The electric hybrid ferry will be 100.5 meters long, 17.4 meters wide and will accommodate 90 cars.

There is an option for a second vessel.

Nov 14
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Moby’s RoRo Hartmuth Puschmann Ready For Delivery To Arab Bridge Maritime

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Moby’s HARTMUTH PUSCHMANN has been renamed AMAL, registered in Limassol and is now ready to leave Italy.

The 1993-built roro ship was sold earlier this year for €13 million but it has been operating on the maritime link between the ports of Livorno and Cagliari in bareboat charter for the last six months.

The name of the new owner remained undisclosed, but some sources told Ferry Shipping News that it might be the Middle Eastern company Arab Bridge Maritime, while the vessel is likely to be deployed in the Red Sea region.

Nov 14
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FERRY FINANCE

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Q3 in brief:

  • Q3 EBITDA on level with 2018 despite UK slowdown. This slowdown in trade between UK and continental Europe continued through Q3 and lowered freight volumes on the North Sea ferry routes and passenger volumes on the Channel.
  • Logistics Division increased EBITDA 15% in Q3 as contract logistics in UK & Ireland and other activities across the division performed well despite of the UK slowdown.
  • The Channel freight market share was increased in Q3.
  • Mediterranean’s revenue growth continued but earnings were held back by a rise in costs due to operational challenges. A simplified route and port terminal structure was introduced in Mediterranean at the start of Q4.

+2.0% Revenue DKK 4.5bn

-0.2%  EBITDA DKK 1.2bn

+4.0% Profit before tax DKK 647m

Outlook 2019

Due to the ongoing European slowdown, expected revenue growth is now around 6% (previously: 6-8%). To reflect a reduced risk of a no-deal Brexit occurring in 2019, the outlook range for EBITDA before special items is narrowed to DKK 3.55-3.75bn (previously: DKK 3.5-3.8bn).

Source: DFDS Q3
Nov 14
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Tallink Grupp Reports Record-Breaking Q3

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The record-breaking quarter is the result of the group carrying and serving record numbers of passengers in July and August and strong onboard and onshore sales.

  • Net profit was €54.6 million (46.1 million in Q3 2018), which is the highest ever net profit for the group for Q3.
  • EBITDA increased by €12.1 million to €83.2 million.
  • Revenue increased by 1.5% to a total of €287.8 million.

First 9 months 

  • €44.2 million net profit, which is a 2.4 million (5.8%) increase.
  • Revenue decreased by 0.1% and was €722.7 million.
  • EBITDA increased by almost €19 million (€137.7 million).

The financial result of the first nine months of 2019 was positively impacted by the very strong third quarter, but negatively impacted by the docking of seven of the company’s vessels in the first half of the year.

Source: Tallink Grupp