FährNews Aktuell – Issue October 2024

SAINT-MALO delivered, Baleària expands further, and much more. | FährNews Current

Hello and welcome to the October issue of FährNews Aktuell in 2024. The top topics of this episode are presented by ferry-guide.com, where you can easily book Ferries online:

• GALAXY I charter extended – How long the ship will now stay in the Netherlands
• SAINT-MALO delivered – From when the newbuilding for Brittany Ferries will go into service
• And: Baleària continues to expand – where you can travel with the Spanish ferry company in the future

The top topics of the October issue of FährNews Aktuell were presented by ferry-guide.com, the easy online booking platform for your ferry crossing. But here we go with this issue of FährNews Aktuell.

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And here is the entire October issue of FährNews Aktuell for you to read again:

1 TYRFING launched

[1] The new electric ferry TYRFING from Samsølinjen has been launched at the Cemre shipyard in Turkey. The TYRFING is the sister ship of the NERTHUS, which was launched at the shipyard in April this year.

The all-electric Ferry, designed by OSK Design, is 116.8 meters long, has space for 600 passengers and 188 cars and will serve the Ballen-Kalundborg route in Denmark. It is being prepared for autonomous travel between the Ferries – with automatic docking and recharging at the quay – and has Echandia batteries with a capacity of 3.8 MWh, which can be fully charged in 20-25 minutes.

The NERTHUS is intended for Alslinjen and has a slightly smaller battery capacity of 3.1 MWh for the shorter Fynshav-Bøjden route.

2 HSC MAX to Seajets

[2] In May 2024, Molslinjen announced that it had sold its HSC MAX to a ferry operator in the Mediterranean and that it would be delivered at the end of 2024. According to confirmed information, the buyer of the ship is the Greek-Cypriot company Seajets, which will take over the ship in the next few days. The MAX has been operating on the Aarhus-Odden route for many years and has also been in service on the Rønne-Ystad route. The HSC MAX was built in Australia by Incat in 1998.

3 GALAXY I charter extended

[3] Tallink Grupp has extended the charter contract with the Dutch company Slaapschepen Public BV for its ship GALAXY I. The vessel has been chartered to the Netherlands since September 2022 and currently provides temporary accommodation for asylum seekers in Amsterdam. Under the new contract, the charter of the ship will be extended for a further year from October 2024, with the possibility of extending the contract for a further 6+6 months thereafter.

In addition to the GALAXY I, the company’s SILJA EUROPA is currently chartered to the Netherlands until the end of 2024 and also provides accommodation for asylum seekers in the city of Rotterdam.

4 Delivery of the SAINT-MALO

[4] The next e-flexer for Brittany Ferries has been delivered by the CMI Jinling Weihai shipyard and is now being transferred to Europe. The SAINT-MALO will connect Portsmouth in England with Saint-Malo in France from the beginning of next year and replace the BRETAGNE, which was built in 1989, on the route.

[5] A total of 1290 passengers can be accommodated on board. The SAINT-MALO differs from its E-Flexer sisters primarily due to its shortening to [6] 194.7 meters and [5] the reduced vehicle capacity of 1100 loading meters in favor of additional cabins. In contrast to the two E-Flexers SALAMANCA and SANTOÑA already in service for Brittany Ferries, the SAINT-MALO has 386 cabins instead of 340.

[7] Various cabin options as well as restaurants, lounges, entertainment and children’s play areas and a shopping area make up the facilities at Ferry.

[4] Various works of art by Alexander Goudie can also be found on board the ship, as well as local products and an overall theme of the ship based on Brittany.

At sea, the ship will be powered by LNG; when maneuvering in port, it will rely on an electric drive. A shore power connection is also to be installed in Portsmouth.

If you would like to experience the SAINT-MALO on the route between Portsmouth and Saint-Malo for yourself, then book your ticket for the Ferry with our partner ferry-guide.com. Here you can also see all the alternative crossing options directly when you make your booking if, for example, a departure doesn’t fit into your schedule. You will also receive a price overview of the individual shipping companies during the booking process. At ferry-guide.com you can easily book online at Ferries. You can also find the link to ferry-guide.com at the top of the video description or at the end of this video in the endcard.

[4] The BRETAGNE left the line on November 3 and is to be sold. No information is yet known about her whereabouts. The SAINT-MALO is scheduled to enter service on February 12, 2025.

5 Baleària expands further into Algeria

[8] Baleària is planning to expand existing routes and gradually integrate new routes to Algeria. Since October 18, Baleària has been offering a second weekly connection to Algeria, between Valencia in Spain and Algiers in Algeria. This connection complements the existing service between Valencia and Mostaganem.
By the end of December, Baleària plans to increase its service to three weekly departures between Spain and Algeria with a new connection between Valencia and Oran.

From mid-January next year, a route between Barcelona and Algiers will be established and Valencia will be connected with two weekly connections, one of which will be a fixed connection to Algiers and the other alternating weekly between Oran and Mostaganem.

[9] According to Baleària, this should ensure better connections between Spain and Algeria and enable a greater variety of routes to meet customer needs.

6 Golden Star Ferries takes over ANDROS KING

[10] On September 27, 2024, the Spanish ferry company Armas handed over the VOLCÁN DE TABURIENTE to the Greek shipping company Golden Star Ferries. The ship was officially purchased in July of this year, [11] set sail from Las Palmas on October 4 for the final transfer voyage and arrived in Piraeus on October 11.

[10] The Ferry has now been renamed ANDROS KING and will be converted in the coming period to adapt to Greek ferry operations.
Built in Spain in 2006, the ship has a capacity for 1500 passengers and offers 1200 loading meters for vehicles.

[12] The Ferry is likely to have been given its new name ANDROS KING to complement the ANDROS QUEEN, which was commissioned in 2023 for Golden Star Ferries and is deployed on the Rafina-Andros-Tinos-Mykonos route.

7 HSC THUNDER sold to Attica Group

[13] The catamaran fast ferry HSC THUNDER operated by Fast Ferries was sold to the Attica Group for EUR 17.75 million and renamed HIGHSPEED 3. Under the colors of Hellenic Seaways, the ship is intended to strengthen Attica Group’s presence in traffic to and from Crete and offers space for 1,068 passengers and 210 cars. The fast ferry reaches a speed of 36 knots.

[14] The 86.6-meter-long Ferry was built in 1998 by the Australian shipyard Austal and was last completely renovated in 2021.

But that’s it for the October issue of FährNews Aktuell in 2024. Did you like the issue? Then please leave a Like. If you have any other comments or requests, please write us a comment. We look forward to your feedback!

To book your ferry crossing, you can now click on the link to ferry-guide.com. Otherwise, feel free to subscribe! If you haven’t had enough FährNews yet, we can recommend the last issue of FährNews Aktuell. Among other things, it dealt with the end of the SKÅNE JET and the STENA VISION. Have fun and see you soon!

Sources

• [1] “The electric ferry TYRFING for Samsølinjen launched”, Shippax. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://www.shippax.com/en/news/the-electric-ferry-tyrfing-for-samsolinjen-launched.aspx
• [2] Ferry Shipping Summit, “Ferry Shipping News, week 43”, October 25, 2024.
• [3] sandra, “Tallink Grupp Signs Agreement To Extend Charter Of Vessel Galaxy I To The Netherlands”, Ferry Shipping News. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://ferryshippingnews.com/tallink-grupp-signs-agreement-to-extend-charter-of-vessel-galaxy-i-to-the-netherlands/
• [4] “Brittany Ferries takes delivery of SAINT-MALO”, Shippax. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://www.shippax.com/en/news/brittany-ferries-takes-delivery-of-saint-malo.aspx
• [5] “Brittany Ferries’ Bretagne Replacement Saint-Malo Launched, Keel Laid for Normandie Successor – niferry.co.uk”. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://www.niferry.co.uk/brittany-ferries-bretagne-replacement-launched/
• [6] “Saint-Malo”, Deltamarin. Accessed October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://deltamarin.com/references/ropax_ferry/saint-malo/
• [7] “Introducing Saint-Malo”, Brittany Ferries UK. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://www.brittany-ferries.co.uk/ships/cruise-ferries/saint-malo/about
• [8] “Baleària Expands Routes to Algeria”. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://ferryshippingnews.com/balearia-expands-routes-to-algeria-enhancing-spain-algeria-maritime-connections/
• [9] “Baleària expands its connections to Algeria with services to Algiers and Oran”, Shippax. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://www.shippax.com/en/news/baleria-expands-its-connections-to-algeria-with-services-to-algiers-and-oran.aspx
• [10] “Volcán de Taburiente Delivered to Golden Star Ferries”. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://ferryshippingnews.com/volcan-de-taburiente-delivered-to-golden-star-ferries/
• [11] “Vessel Characteristics: Ship ANDROS KING (Ro-Ro/Passenger Ship) Registered in St Kitts Nevis – Vessel details, Current position and Voyage information – IMO 9348558MMSI 9348558Call Sign V4JH6 | AIS Marine Traffic”, MarineTraffic.com. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/details/ships/shipid:166362/mmsi:341885001/imo:9348558/vessel:ANDROS KING
• [12] “M/S SILVER QUEEN (1998)”. Accessed October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://www.faktaomfartyg.se/silver_queen_1998.htm
• [13] “HSC THUNDER Renamed HIGHSPEED 3”. Accessed October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://ferryshippingnews.com/hsc-thunder-renamed-highspeed-3/
• [14] “Attica acquires high-speed catamaran THUNDER”, Shippax. Accessed: October 26, 2024 [Online]. Available at: https://www.shippax.com/en/news/attica-acquires-high-speed-catamaran-thunder.aspx

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