DFDS adapts Northern Baltic ferry services to pandemic
Due to lower demand, DFDS reduces the number of weekly sailings on the Paldiski-Hanko ferry route. This frees up ferry capacity, which DFDS will use to improve its schedule for for the Paldiski-Kapellskär route where customer demand remains stable. DFDS has also entered into an agreement on conditions for booking transport on demand for DFDS’ customers on Eckerö Line’s Muuga-Vuosaari (Tallinn-Helsinki) route to enhance freight services between Estonia and Finland.
The impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on the production and service industries causes DFDS to optimize its ferry services in the Northern Baltic and adapt them to customer requirements.
“We have decided to reduce the number of sailings by almost a half between the Estonian port of Paldiski and the Finnish port of Hanko following reduced demand on the route.” says Peeter Ojasaar, Route Director, Estonia-Finland and Estonia-Sweden.
This frees up time for the Paldiski-Hanko ferry, Sailor, which can be used to rearrange capacity to DFDS’ route between Paldiski and the Swedish Port of Kapellskär in Sweden. “This enables us to offer both cargo customers and passengers much more attractive evening departures every day.”
"Due to Sweden's different approach to fighting the pandemic, this route is experiencing steady demand for cargo transportation. And with Sailor to assist Optima Seaways, which is currently the only ferry on the route, we will be able to offer our customers the departure times they have requested for the Estonia-Sweden service,” says Peeter Ojasaar.
Agreement with Eckerö Line At the end of April, DFDS signed a freight agreement with Eckerö Line for DFDS’ conditions for booking transport for our freight customers on Eckerö Line’s route between Muuga in Tallinn and Vuosaari in Helsinki. “With this, we can offer a total of 30 departures per week between Estonia and Finland. This will greatly enhance our customer service in the transport market between Estonia and Finland,” says Peeter Ojasaar.
“In the current situation with the transport market challenged by a pandemic and economic slowdown, our agreement with Eckerö Line will allow for a better utilization of transport capacity and benefit our customers who will be able to continue to book voyages directly with DFDS and under DFDS’ conditions,” says Peeter Ojasaar.
__Further information: __ Peeter Ojasaar, telephone +3725014982
For Latvia, Lithuania, Russia: Vaidas Klumbys, telephone +37069848672 For Sweden: Per-Henrik Persson +46708370402 Other : Anders Refsgaard, telephone +4521650835
Or Gert Jakobsen, +45 24 40 00 43