Finnlines
Parent Grimaldi Group | | |
Website | www.finnlines.com |
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Finnlines Plc (Finnish: Finnlines Oyj, Swedish: Finnlines Abp)[2] is a shipping operator of ro-ro and passenger services in the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. It is a subsidiary of the Grimaldi Group. Finnlines’ sea transports are concentrated in the Baltic and the North Sea. Finnlines’ passenger-freight vessels offer services from Finland to Germany and via Åland to Sweden as well as from Sweden to Germany. The Company has subsidiaries in Germany, Belgium, Great Britain, Sweden, Denmark and Poland. In addition to sea transportation, the Company provides port services in Finland in Helsinki and Turku.
Finnlines’ roll-on/roll-off services cover the Finnish ports of Hanko, Helsinki, Kotka, Turku and Uusikaupunki, offering connections with Estonian, Polish, German, Danish, British, Dutch, Belgian and Spanish ports.
Three Star-class ropax vessels (see roll-on/roll-off vessel variations) operate between Helsinki and Travemünde. For passengers it is the only direct connection by sea between Finland and Continental Europe.
The other ropax services consist of the route between Malmö, Sweden, and Travemünde, Germany and between Naantali and the Åland Islands, Finland, and Kapellskär, Sweden.
History
1947–1977
Finnlines was founded in 1947 as a subsidiary of Merivienti Oy, founded earlier the same year by
Merivienti Oy (English: Sea Export Ltd.) was founded on 18 April 1947 by the Finnish
In May and June 1947, Merivienti acquired three second-hand
The company first begun carrying passengers in 1962, when the car ferry
In 1973 Finnlines purchased MS Stena Atlantica from
1977–1987
The new, large, fast
In 1982 the first of the new jumbo-
1987–2002
A full turn-around in Effoa's operations took place in 1989 when the company decided to separate their freight-carrying operations from their passenger operations. In place of dividends, shares of Finncarriers were given to stock owners, and after several mergers, diffusions, and name-changes, a new Finnlines Group was born in 1990. In the following years Finnlines acquired
In 1997 Finnlines made a deal with the German Stinnes AG, essentially swapping the shared Finnlines ownership of the German company BLT with the full ownership of Poseidon Schiffahrt. As a result, the company name "Poseidon" disappeared from the sides of Finland-Germany ships and Poseidon became Finnlines Deutschland. With Poseidon, the trainferry operator Railship and 40% of Team Lines also passed into Finnlines' ownership. In the same year Finnlines also became the sole owner of Finnlink.[6] In 1999 Finnlines took delivery of two new ro-pax vessels, MS Finnclipper and MS Finneagle, both with a passenger capacity of over 400.[7] In 2001 Finncarriers was merged into the parent company. In the same year Finnlines purchased the rest of Team Lines, and in 2002 the Swedish Nordö-Link (trafficking between Malmö and Travemünde) also became a Finnlines subsidiary.[6]
2002–present
In 2004 Finnlines decided to further simplify the myriad of names under which it operated ships, merging Finnlink and Nordö-Link into the parent company. Finnlines also ordered five new large ro-pax ferries from the Italian shipyard
In 2018, Finnlines ordered three new ro-ro ships from the Nanjing Jinling shipyard in China.[20] Construction on the first ship in the class began in June 2020, with deliveries expected in 2021 and 2022.[20] In January 2020, two new ro-pax vessels, named the Superstar class and to be Finnlines' largest ships upon their entry into service in 2023, were ordered from the China Merchants Jinling Shipyard.[21]
Services
Finnlines' roro cargo ships serve Finland, Russia, Sweden, Poland, Germany, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, the United Kingdom, and Spain. Finnlines also maintains freight/passenger services on the routes Helsinki–Travemünde, Naantali–Kapellskär, and Malmö–Travemünde.
Freight/passenger services
Helsinki–Travemünde
Finnlines makes runs between Helsinki and Travemünde on three ropax ferries.[citation needed]
- MS Finnstar
- MS Finnmaid
- MS Finnlady
Naantali–Långnäs–Kapellskär
Marketed as Finnlink, Finnlines offers freight and passenger service between Naantali (Mainland Finland), Långnäs (Åland), and Kapellskär (Sweden) with two ropax ferries. There are also additional roro ferries on top of the ropax services (as of August 2016)
- MS Finnswan
- MS Finnsirius (new 2023)
- MS Finncanopus (new 2023)
Malmö–Travemünde
The Nordö Link service is currently operated by three ropax vessels.
- MS Finnpartner
- MS Finntrader
- MS Finnfellow
Freight services
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- MS Finnwave
- MS Finntide
- MS Finnsky
- MS Finnsea
- MS Finnsun
- MS Finnmill
- MS Finneco 1 (new 2022)
- MS Finneco 2 (new 2022)
- MS Finneco 3 (new 2022)
- MS Finnbreeze
- MS Finnhawk
- MS Finnkraft
- MS Finnpulp
Rosslare-Zeebrugge
Finnlines makes runs between Rosslare and Zeebrugge with six sailings per week (3 round trips). Current ships on the route are the MS Finnpulp and MS Finnwave.
Helsinki–Gdynia
Finnlines makes runs between Helsinki and Gdynia with three/four departures per week.
Helsinki–Aarhus
Finnlines makes runs between Helsinki and Aarhus with two departures per week.
References
- ^ a b Key Figures, retrieved 8 December 2016
- ^ "Finnlines Oyj". Business Information System. Helsinki: National Board of Patents and Registration, Tax Administration. Archived from the original on 20 July 2011. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
- ^ ISBN 952-9690-00-2.
- ^ Karonen (1992). p. 11
- ^ Karonen (1992). pp. 135–137
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Finnlines' 55 Years Archived 2007-07-10 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 4 May 2007
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j The Development of Finnlines' Baltic Fleet Archived 2007-05-18 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 4 May 2007
- ^ (in Finnish) FCBS Forum, retrieved 4 May 2007
- ^ "M/S Finnpatner (1966)" (in Swedish). at Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish), retrieved 4 May 2007
- ^ a b (in Swedish) M/S Saga (1966) at Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish), retrieved 4 May 2007
- ^ a b c finnjetweb.com – Finnjet chronicle, retrieved 4 May 2007
- ^ a b (in Swedish) M/S Finlandia (1967) at Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish), retrieved 4 May 2007
- ^ "M/S Bore Star" (in Swedish). at Fakta om Fartyg (in Swedish), retrieved 4 May 2007
- ^ (in Finnish) FCBS Forum – Finnlines builds new ropaxes Archived 2008-09-20 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 4 May 2007
- ^ a b c Finnlines interim report 1 January – 30 June 2007[permanent dead link], retrieved 20 August 2007
- ^ Finnlines press release: Finnlines investing in new roro vessels[permanent dead link], retrieved 24 August 2007
- ^ Optima Shipbrokers: Optima Weekly volume 171, week 33 Archived 2007-09-28 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 20 August 2007
- Ships MonthlyFebruary 2016 page 7
- ^ "How Finnlines is making its ferries fit for the future". International Cruise & Ferry Review. 16 July 2018. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
- ^ a b "Construction starts on Finnlines' hybrid RoRo vessel". Marine Link. 10 June 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
- ^ "Finnlines' Superstar Ropax". The Motorship. 10 January 2020. Retrieved 13 September 2020.
External links
- Company website
- Finnlink company website
- Nordö Link company website
- Nordic Ferry Center
- Finnlines at Simplon Postcards
- "Finnlines at Fakta om Fartyg" (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 2008-03-21. Retrieved 2006-12-02.
- (in Swedish) Finncarriers at Fakta om Fartyg