Shippax
Newsletter– week 14

Nankai
Ferry to go out of business in
2028

Nankai
Electric Railway announced on 30 March
2026, that its 100%-owned subsidiary,
Nankai Ferry, will withdraw from the
ferry business by the end of March
2028.

Nankai
Ferry was founded in 1975 and has
operated the Wakayama–Tokushima route.
Currently, the vessels FERRY KATSURAGI
and FERRY I serve the route between
Honshu and Shikoku.

Lifeboats
can be unstable in some emergency
scenarios

EU
testing of six lifeboats for stability
showed that some are at risk of
becoming flooded when not fully loaded
and passengers are all seated on one
side. This was the outcome of a
testing campaign organised by the
European Commission’s
Directorate-General for Internal
Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and
SMEs (DG GROW).

The
Port of Gothenburg aquire land for
westward expansion

The
Port of Gothenburg has acquired a
large area located in the port’s outer
areas. The agreement – signed on
Tuesday morning with the seller
Platzer – creates conditions for the
continuation of the port’s long-term
plan for further expansion of the
port. The total transaction value,
which also includes a minor property
sale, amounts to SEK 684 million.

DFDS
charters CIUDAD DE VALENCIA for
the Baltics

From
mid-September, DFDS will
significantly strengthen freight and
passenger services on the
Karlshamn-Klaipeda route with the
introduction of newly chartered
vessel CIUDAD DE VALENCIA. The 2,566
lanemetre/950 passenger “Visentini”
RoPax will almost triple passenger
capacity compared to the ship it
replaces, while also providing
additional freight space.

Baleària
awarded concession for new port
terminal in Barcelona

The
Port of Barcelona approved the
concession for the construction and
operation of the future passenger and
RoRo cargo terminal, on Adossat wharf,
to Baleària for operation of its own
ships. The concession was granted
after a request for this terminal in
December 2024, accompanied by the
construction and operating project.

NORRÖNA
gains access to shore power during
calls in Iceland

Port of
Seyðisfjörður, where Faroese Smyril
Line calls weekly for eight months a
year as part of the North Atlantic
route between Denmark, the Faroe
Islands, and Iceland, can now offer
shore power. ShoreLink has supplied a
shore power system to the port,
enabling Smyril Line’s ferry NORRÖNA
to shut down its auxiliary engines
while alongside.

Baleària’s
acquisition of Armas assets
approved by competition authority

Spain’s
National Commission on Markets and
Competition (CNMC) has approved, in a
second phase, two transactions through
which Baleària acquires exclusive
control of certain Armas
Trasmediterránea assets in the Canary
Islands and the Strait of Gibraltar.

Brittany
Ferries confirms its growth
momentum in Guernsey

Brittany
Ferries has a particularly
encouraging assessment of its first
year of activity in Guernsey, marked
by a significant increase in traffic
and a consolidation of its presence
on routes to the Channel Islands,
and is now looking ahead to a new
phase of growth.

Since
winning its 15-year contract with the
States of Guernsey and launching
routes from France (St Malo) and the
UK (Portsmouth and Poole) to Guernsey
and the neighbouring island of Jersey
a year ago, the Company has recorded
encouraging results. In 2025, the
total number of passengers carried to
Guernsey increased by +29% compared to
2024, confirming the growing
attractiveness of these routes.

DFDS
expands capacity on
Rosslare-Dunkirk route with third
vessel

From
September, DFDS will offer seven
weekly roundtrips on the
Rosslare-Dunkirk route by adding a
third vessel to the route to provide
increased capacity for freight
operators and more travel options for
passengers during the holiday season.

DFDS
will significantly strengthen its
Rosslare–Dunkirk route this September
with the addition of two extra weekly
roundtrips. The third vessel will join
ATHENA SEAWAYS and VICTORIA SEAWAYS,
which already operate on the route.

Austal
Vietnam launches 71-metre RoPax
vessel for The Degage Group of
French Polynesia

Austal
Vietnam has successfully launched Hull
426, DORY2, a 71-metre RoPax vessel
for The Degage Group of French
Polynesia.

Featuring
a steel monohull and aluminium
superstructure, DORY2 has been
purpose-designed for inter-island
operations and will accommodate up to
140 passengers and 17 crew. The vessel
includes a 494 square metre cargo
deck, capable of transporting
containers, palletised freight and
vehicles, providing a highly flexible
logistics solution for the region.

SCILLONIAN
IV takes to the water for the
first time

The
Isles of Scilly Steamship Group is
celebrating a major milestone in the
construction of SCILLONIAN IV as the
state-of-the-art passenger ferry was
officially launched on Saturday 28th
March 2026.

The 75m
vessel, which has the capacity to
carry 600 passengers, will replace
SCILLONIAN III in March 2027,
heralding the start of a new era of
travel to the Isles of Scilly.

Incat
Crowther to design 80-metre
high-speed catamaran for Korea
Express Ferry

Incat
Crowther has been contracted by South
Korean shipbuilder Kangnam Corporation
to design an 80-metre high-speed
catamaran RoPax ferry for Korea
Express Ferry (KEF). The vessel is
intended for routes connecting Incheon
Metropolitan City with the Yellow Sea
islands of Daecheongdo, Baengnyeongdo,
and Socheongdo in Ongjin County, South
Korea.

Carnival
Corporation reports record first
quarter 2026 results

Carnival
Corporation & plc announced record
first-quarter 2026 operating results
on 27 March, driven by strong demand,
higher yields and robust close-in
bookings. The cruise operator posted
revenues of USD 6,165 million, up from
USD 5,810 million in the prior-year
period, marking the highest
first-quarter top line in company
history.

Net
income attributable to Carnival
Corporation & plc reached USD 258
million, swinging from a loss of USD
78 million a year earlier. Adjusted
net income totaled USD 275 million,
while adjusted earnings per share rose
50 percent to USD 0.20 from USD 0.13.
Adjusted EBITDA hit a first-quarter
record of approximately USD 1,300
million. Gross margin yields increased
nearly 10 percent, and net yields in
constant currency rose 2.7 percent,
beating December guidance by more than
one point.

Özata
Shipyard launches electric ferry
for Torghatten Nord

Turkish
shipbuilder Özata Shipyard has
successfully launched NB102 FLØYTIND,
the second of three fully electric
ferry in a series ordered by Norwegian
operator Torghatten Nord AS.

The
vessel, designed by The Norwegian Ship
Design Company, measures 76.85 metres
in length and 15.50 metres in beam. It
can carry 60 vehicles and 202
passengers (including crew) and is
equipped with a dual battery system
totalling 1,960 kWh (2 × 980 kWh) for
zero-emission operations.

MENAWETHAN
sets sail on landmark delivery
journey to Penzance

The
Isles of Scilly Steamship Group’s new
purpose-built freight vessel,
MENAWETHAN, has departed the shipyard
in Vietnam and begun her delivery
voyage to the UK this morning.

The
journey to Penzance is expected to
take around 72 days, weather
permitting. The route will take
MENAWETHAN via the Cape of Good Hope
in South Africa, with four bunker
stops en route.