Shippax
Newsletter– week 3

New
ferries for the Malta-Gozo route

The
Maltese government has announced a EUR
130 million investment to modernise
ferry services between Malta and Gozo,
responding to years of criticism over
ageing vessels and service
disruptions. The plan includes the
purchase of two new ferries and the
retrofitting of the existing fleet,
with full implementation expected by
2029.

A large
ferry carrying 250 vehicles will cost
around EUR 65 million, while a smaller
75-vehicle vessel will cost EUR 45
million.

Stena
Line posts record freight volumes
on Belfast routes

2025
was another record year for Stena Line
freight volumes on its three Belfast
services with growth of 1.0%,
increasing volumes to almost 600,000
freight units shipped from Belfast to
Cairnryan, Liverpool (Birkenhead) and
Heysham.

BEN-MY-CHREE
on charter to Stena Line for four
months

Stena
Line has chartered the Isle of Man
Steam Packet RoPax vessel BEN-MY-CHREE
for the first four months of the year
to cover the route between Rosslare
and Fishguard. Initially, this is
while STENA NORDICA is acting as a
replacement on the Dublin/Holyhead
route.

DFDS
December 2025 volumes

DFDS
reported December 2025 volumes,
showing total freight of 3.0m lane
metres, 1.2% above 2024 and 0.4% lower
adjusted for route changes. The number
of passengers in December 2025 was
adjusted for route changes* down 2.7%
to 329k vs 2024 and the adjusted
full-year growth rate was -4.4%.

Fred.
Olsen Cargo Express is reporting
disappointing results

Six
months after launching its pure RoRo
service from La Palma (Gran Canaria)
with the RoRo vessels BENTAYGA CARGO,
BAHIA CARGO, and BRENAS CARGO, Fred.
Olsen Cargo Express is reporting
disappointing results. Despite
significant investment in second-hand
tonnage, load factors remain too low
to cover operating costs, with average
volumes around 20 units and some
sailings recording even lower figures.

Historic
passenger record on the Canary
Islands

Fred.
Olsen Express closed 2025 with a
historic record of 4 million
passengers transported – the highest
figure ever recorded by the company in
a single year. Overall, it increased
the number of people and vehicles
carried by 10% compared with the
previous year, surpassing one million
vehicles.

Port
of Trelleborg to introduce shore
power in 2026

Onshore
power facilities are being installed
in Port of Trelleborg’s berths no. 10
and 11. Some work and connections
remain, but in early 2026, TT-Line
will be able to connect four of their
vessels to onshore electricity in the
Port of Trelleborg. The port’s two own
wind turbines will supply the vessels
with fossil-free electricity.

Grimaldi
celebrates the arrival of the
GRANDE MANILA

The new
PCTC GRANDE MANILA was delivered to
the Grimaldi Group and christened in
Shanghai. Built by SWS (Shanghai
Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Company
Limited) and CSTC (China Shipbuilding
Trading Company Limited) – both part
of China State Shipbuilding
Corporation Limited (CSSC) – the
vessel is the Italian group’s seventh
ammonia-ready unit, meaning she is
prepared for the future use of ammonia
as an alternative fuel.

Trinidad
& Tobago charter BLUE WAVE
HARMONY to replace CABO STAR

The
Government of Trinidad & Tobago
has found a replacement ferry for CABO
STAR, whose charter from Bridgemans
expired on 12 January. Replacer is the
1,925 lanemetre capacity 1991-built
freight RoRo BLUE WAVE HARMONY which
has been chartered for 12 months from
her owners Blue Wave Corporation. BLUE
WAVE HARMONY, formerly the EUROPEAN
SEAWAY owned by P&O Ferries, is
expected to arrive in Port of Spain
around the 21 January.

New
seven-year ferry concession
awarded to Torghatten

Torghatten
has signed a concession contract with
Nordland County (Northern Norway) for
the operation of two ferry routes:
Sandnessjøen–Bjørn (Dønna
island)–Løkta and Søvik–Austbø–Flostad
(Herøy island)–Brasøy.

Öresundslinjen
reported strong growth in 2025

In
2025, more than six million passengers
and more than a million cars chose
Öresundslinjen’s ferries for their
trip across the Sound. 6,373,842
passengers – of which 3,363,377 were
pedestrians – ensured another year of
growth on the route.

The
number of passenger cars has also
increased by two percent to 1,036,897
compared to 2024. This is the highest
number of passenger cars since 2019.

DALMACIJA
replaces MARKO POLO on
Jadrolinija’s Italy routes

In its
2026 timetable, Jadrolinija will
withdraw the ferry MARKO POLO, built
in 1973, from the company’s
international routes to Italy. The
vessel, which has been operating for
Jadrolinija since 1989, will instead
be used exclusively on the company’s
domestic route network within Croatia,
the operator announced.

Design
tender out for new Jadrolinija
ferries

Jadrolinija
closed 2025 with transporting 3.5
million vehicles and 12.2 million
passengers. This represents a slight
decline compared to the exceptional
2024 results, when the company
achieved its all-time high of
approximately 3.76 million vehicles
and 12.67 million passengers.

Toyota
cuts scope 3 emissions by 22,000
tonnes using UECC low-carbon
shipping

Toyota
Motor Europe (TME) reduced its Scope 3
emissions by 22,148 tonnes of CO2e in
2024 by using low-carbon fuels under
United European Car Carriers’ (UECC)
Sail for Change programme. The savings
were achieved by transporting nearly
55,000 vehicles on UECC vessels
between August and December.

Wasaline
posts solid 2025 results

Wasaline’s
volumes increased by 2.6% to 259,769
passengers in 2025, despite the vessel
being on dry dock during the last week
of December. On the freight side,
there was a slight decline in volumes,
mainly due to the economic downturn,
as major construction projects in the
region were postponed, paper imports
and exports decreased, and following
the bankruptcy of Northvolt.
Nevertheless, freight operations
showed an increase in market share.

BUENAVISTA
EXPRESS to be put into service on
the shared Canary Islands route

Fred.
Olsen Express and Baleària will on 24
January add the BUENAVISTA EXPRESS to
the route between Huelva and the
Canary Islands, a route operated in a
partnership between the two parties.

The
vessel will replace the first-gen
Visentini RoPax SICILIA.

Large
tech-package from ABB on BC
Ferries’ New Major Vessels

ABB
will supply a complete package of
power, propulsion and control
technology for BC Ferries’s four new
double-ended RoPax ferries. The
hybrid-electric ferries, which will
replace four end-of-life vessels, are
part of BC Ferries’ ‘New Major
Vessels’ program, aimed at the body of
water separating Vancouver Island from
the Lower Mainland of British
Columbia.

Viking
Line broke its cargo record

In
2025, a total of 4,608,573 passengers
travelled on Viking Line’s vessels.
Passenger volume decreased somewhat
compared to 2024, by 0.8%. However,
the number of passengers on BIRKA
GOTLAND, which the company owns
jointly with Gotlandsbolaget,
increased 30% to 570,513 passengers,
compared to its shorter first year in
service, 2024. BIRKA GOTLAND sails
mostly between Stockholm and
Mariehamn.

Atlânticoline
in the Azores choose Carus to
upgrade their digital experience

Atlânticoline,
the ferry operator in the Azores,
Portugal, has partnered with Carus to
enhance the digital experience for
passengers traveling between the
Azorean islands.

AURORA
BOTNIA now back in service with
the largest RoPax battery
installation to date

Wasaline
has expanded the onboard battery
capacity of AURORA BOTNIA to 12.6 MWh
from 2.2 MWh, making it the largest
marine battery installation to date on
a RoPax vessel in service, through the
installation of AYK Energy’s Lithium
Iron Phosphate batteries. The vessel’s
drydocking works were carried out at
Turku Repair Yard, one of BLRT Repair
Yards, members of BLRT Grupp,
contributing its respective expertise
to the project.

DFDS
appoints Michael Hansen as new CEO

DFDS
has appointed Michael Hansen as its
new President & CEO, effective
from latest 1 July 2026. Michael
Hansen is currently President &
CEO of Hempel and succeeds Torben
Carlsen who is expected to step down
as President & CEO on the same
date.

SANTA
JULIANA delivered to Montenegro
Lines

Montenegro
Shipping Lines took delivery in
December of the newbuild SANTA JULIANA
from Fujian Xinshenghai Shipbuilding
in China. The 2,380 GT RoPax vessel
will be deployed on the Batangas-based
company’s route between Batangas and
Calapan.

Bridgemans
Services Group expands global
fleet with the addition of floatel
MEGA X

Bridgemans
Services Group (Bridgemans), a
provider of integrated marine
workforce accommodation solutions,
announced the addition of the MEGA X
to its growing global fleet of
floatels. MEGA X is the former MEGA
EXPRESS FIVE of Corsica Ferries.

Molslinjen
expands collaboration with
Vikingbus

From 1
June 2026, it will be Vikingbus that
runs Molslinjen’s bus company,
Kombardo Expressen. Thus, Molslinjen
expands its collaboration with
Vikingbus, which today also runs
Kombardo Expressen’s routes to and
from Bornholm and Sweden.

Molslinjen’s
Kattegat service transported more
cars with fewer ferries

The
ferry year 2025 meant more cars than
ever on Molslinjen’s ferries on the
Kattegat. This is despite a year with
one less ferry than before and thus
also fewer departures.

1,362,835
cars were transported in 2025 compared
to 1,335,919 the year before. This is
an increase of two percent – and
slightly better than in 2019 when
1,351,588 cars were on the then four
ferries.

Third-country
PCTC network further expanded by
Cosco

Cosco
Shipping Specialized Carriers
officially launched a new
Thailand-Europe third-country RoRo
(PCTC) service, further strengthening
its end-to-end logistics support for
Chinese OEMs. This took place 26
December, when the 2025-built PCTC
YONG LE KOU completed loading 200
units of Changan S05 MAX electric
vehicles at Laem Chabang Port,
Thailand – marking Changan’s first
full-vehicle export from its Thailand
manufacturing base to the European
market.

Next
Visentini-newbuilding goes to
Grendi Group

Grendi
Group has entered a five-year time
charter agreement for the Visentini
yard no. 235. The charter of the 204
metre-long, 26-metre-wide
RoRo-newbuilding with a capacity of
3,000 lanemetres and 952 TEU, will
start in June 2026 at the expected
delivery of the vessel from the
Visentini shipyard, bringing Grendi
Group’s fleet up to five vessels.

Scottish
government to nationalise
Ardrossan Harbour and carry out
major upgrading programme to be
able to dock new CalMac ferries

One of
Scotland’s major ferry ports for
lifeline services to the isle of
Arran, Ardrossan, is to be acquired by
the Scottish government, nationalised
and then undergo a major facilities
upgrade to accommodate ferry operator
Caledonian MacBrayne’s (CalMac) latest
two new ferries, GLEN SANNOX and GLEN
ROSA.

Court
decision allowed transfer of five
ferry-ownerships to proceed

With an
order published on 20 December, the
Lazio Regional Administrative Court
rejected Grimaldi Euromed’s request
for interim protection aimed at
blocking the sale of five Moby
ferries: MOBY AKI, MOBY WONDER,
ATHARA, JANAS, and MOBY ALE DUE. The
decision allows the transfer of
ownership to proceed.

Proposal
for further three newbuildings for
Washington State Ferries

The US
Washington Governor Bob Ferguson has
proposed allocating USD 1 billion to
purchase three new state ferries,
along with an additional USD 150
million to keep the oldest vessels in
the Washington State Ferries fleet
operational until the new ships are
delivered. If approved by lawmakers,
the plan would bring the total number
of hybrid-electric ferries under
development to six, moving the state
close to halfway toward its goal of
replacing 13 aging diesel-powered
vessels by 2040.

Dutch
MoD ads additional sealift
capacity from Spliethoff

In the
coming years, the Dutch MoD (Ministry
of Defence) will significantly expand
its sea transport capabilities when
Dutch ConRo operator Spliethoff is
supplying the two identical ConRo
vessels; TRICA and PLYCA. The two
ConRo vessels can carry containers,
vehicles, and helicopters, enabling
the Dutch MOD to move equipment more
quickly by sea.

Stena
Line gets access to shore power in
Ventspils

The
Ventspils Freeport Authority has
signed a contract for the construction
of a shore power connection point at
the ferry terminal of the Port of
Ventspils. This will be the first
berth in the port of Ventspils where
ferries will be able to use a
high-capacity shore power supply
point. Berth No. 16 was built in 2000,
and it provides mooring and handling
services for ferries and other
passenger vessels.

Strait
Link acquired by Igneo
Infrastructure Partners

Igneo
Infrastructure Partners (Igneo), a
global infrastructure investment
manager which manages AUD 34.5 billion
worth of assets, has acquired Strait
Link, which owns and operate the two
RoRo vessels VICTORIAN RELIANCE II and
TASMANIAN ACHIEVER II.

Over
570,000 passengers cruised with
BIRKA GOTLAND in 2025

The
Baltic Sea’s only dedicated cruise
ship, BIRKA GOTLAND, has completed its
first full calendar year in service,
with just over 570,000 passengers.
This represents an increase of 30
percent compared to 2024, when the
ship only operated for three quarters
of the year. Adjusted for the same
traffic period (20 March–31 December),
the increase is 9 per cent (38,000
passengers).

Intesa
Sanpaolo and Grimaldi Group
announce EUR 162.3 million green
financing deal

Intesa
Sanpaolo, through its IMI Corporate
& Investment Banking Division, has
finalised a EUR 162.3 million
financing deal for Grimaldi Euromed, a
Grimaldi Group company. The financing
will support the acquisition of three
next-generation PCTC ships – GRANDE
EGITTO, GRANDE PACIFICO, and GRANDE
OCEANIA – scheduled for delivery in
2026.

Indonesian
ferry wrecked in the Sunda Strait

The
RoPax vessel NUSA JAYA, built in 1989
and operated by the Jakarta-based
company Putera Master Sarana, sank in
the Sunda Strait on 18 December 2025.
Local media report that the ship had
already begun leaking on 15 December,
prompting a salvage company to be
called in, which boarded the vessel
the same day.

Lite
Ferries takes delivery of LITE
FERRY TWENTY

The
Cebu-based Philippine ferry operator
Lite Ferries has taken delivery of the
newbuild LITE FERRY TWENTY from Ningbo
Sheng Hao Ship Engineering. LITE FERRY
TWENTY is the sixth newbuild delivered
by the Chinese shipyard to Lite
Ferries since 2019. The vessel has a
gross tonnage of 3,923 GT and an
overall length of 90 metres. Including
LITE FERRY TWENTY, Lite Ferries now
operates a fleet of 21 smaller
conventional RoPax ferries.

Linhai
Huipu launched newbuild for Aleson
Shipping

Chinese
Linhai Huipu Shipbuilding launched the
RoPax newbuild ANTONIA 5 on 5 January.
The 2,538 GT ferry has been contracted
by the Philippine company Aleson
Shipping Lines for delivery in 2026.
It is the second newbuild from the
yard for Aleson Shipping Lines. The
shipping company took delivery of
ANTONIA 2 from the yard in April 2025.