Stena joins bidding for SeaFrance vessels
Stena Ro-Ro has confirmed it has submitted an offer for one of three ferries formerly operated by collapsed cross-Channel operator SeaFrance,
It joined Eurotunnel and DFDS in making offers for the vessels before the deadline for bids closed last week.
The Stena subsidiary did not disclose which vessel – Berlioz, Rodin or freighter Nord Pas de Calais – it was looking to acquire, but a spokesman said that if the bid was successful, it would not be deployed on the Channel. The ferry operator’s main routes are between the UK and Ireland.
A source close to the sale process told Lloyds Loading List.com that Eurotunnel had put an indivisible bid of €65 million on the table – €61 million for the ships and €4 million for the rest of SeaFrance’s assets.
The source said DFDS had offered €30 million for the Berlioz and €25 million for the Rodin, and Stena €30 million for the Rodin.
The liquidator will present his recommendations on the bids to the bankruptcy judge handling the sale, who is expected deliver his verdict on 21 May.
However, given that the offers fall well short of SeaFrance’s liabilities, estimated at €150 million, the judge could call for a second round of bidding.
The source said: “I think this is likely, given that the offers are very low. A vessel like the Berlioz (pictured), which is only seven years old, would cost €140 million to build.”
SeaFrance ceased operations in November 2011 but had been carrying 550,000 trucks and three million passengers a year.
Former MD of Brittany Ferries Jean-Claude Giguet is piloting Eurotunnel’s proposed ferry operation between Calais and Dover, which would include hiring more than 500 ex-SeaFrance staff.
DFDS, which currently operates two vessels on the Dover-Calais crossing manned by around 300 ex-SeaFrance workers, declined to say where it plans to deploy the two SeaFrance ships it is bidding for.
Source: http://www.lloydsloadinglist.com/