09 August 2017, 16:02 / Business

DFDS ferries stop calling at Ust-Luga

The line is optimizing routes due to a drop in freight traffic Dmitry Gorshenin

DFDS ferry line stops calls to Ust-Luga / E. Egorov / Vedomosti

The shipping company DFDS is closing the ferry line from Kiel to Ust-Luga. Over the past couple of years, the volume of traffic between these cities has been steadily declining, which has brought the line’s financial performance to an unacceptable level, the company said in a press release. DFDS decided to focus its efforts on the line at the port of St. Petersburg. The last departure from Kiel will take place on August 26, from Ust-Luga - on August 28. The line has been operating since 2011, with ship calls being weekly.

The ferry was traveling from Kiel to St. Petersburg (Petrolesport terminal) with a call at Ust-Luga, now there will be no calls, Anatoly Adrianov, general director of DFDS Seaways Ltd., explained to Vedomosti. (DFDS agent in Russia). The line operated a cargo ferry (containers, rolling cargo and equipment) with the ability to transport 12 passengers, DFDS used it on the basis of a slot charter agreement with the Finnlines ferry line, he clarified. Clients are more interested in Petrolesport; now the volume of traffic in this direction will increase, he says. Adrianov does not disclose the volume of transportation to Ust-Luga, calling it “insignificant.” The frequency of visits to Petrolesport will not change.

Cargo turnover of the St. Petersburg port in November increased for the first time this year

Business / Transportation

The DFDS solution is quite clear and reasonable: the lines are trying to consolidate customers' cargo in one place; Due to the crisis caused by the sharp depreciation of the ruble, the container and ferry business, which are mainly focused on transporting finished products rather than raw materials, suffered the most. Naturally, the lines are trying to survive by optimizing their schedules and cutting costs, explains Oleg Dekhtyar, Deputy General Director for commercial work of Ust-Luga Commercial Sea Port JSC. Paying double port fees for consecutive calls to Ust-Luga and St. Petersburg is often beyond the means of liner carriers, he adds. According to him, the main victims in this situation will be customers, for whom unloading in St. Petersburg will be associated with additional costs for ground transportation. Large construction begins in the area of the port of Ust-Luga, the flow of project and general cargo is steadily growing, for companies planning to build their factories in an industrial zone near the port, it would be of great help to have a reliable carrier capable of delivering their equipment and materials from the center of Europe to almost construction site, notes Dekhtyar. “We don’t say goodbye, but only goodbye with wishes for success and a speedy return,” he sums up.

The line's cargo flow ensured the import of new cars from Europe; the ferry could transport up to 500 cars per trip, says Infranews director Alexey Bezborodov. According to him, Petrolesport is a convenient terminal that can meet all the needs of DFDS.

The turnover of ferry cargo in the port of St. Petersburg for the six months of 2017 fell by more than half - to 78,500 tons, in Ust-Luga - by 2% to 737,000 tons. Container turnover of Ust-Luga during this period decreased by 5% to 35,747 Teu, port of St. Petersburg - increased by 8% to 954,237 Teu. Roll-on cargo in Ust-Luga fell three and a half times to 2,700 tons, in the port of St. Petersburg increased by 67% to 543,000 tons, according to the Federal State Budgetary Institution “Administration of Sea Ports of the Baltic Sea.”