Tallink Grupp and Tanger MED Port Authority, a Moroccan company with the state participation, have signed short-term time-charter agreements for Tallink Grupp’s vessels Victoria I and Romantika. The vessels will operate on international shipping routes between Morocco and France, and between Morocco and Italy in July-September 2021, Tallink Grupp says in a press release.
Victoria I will depart from Tallinn on 28 June and Romantika on 5 July and both have been chartered for 100 days. They will be sailing to the port of Tanger MED in Morocco, one of the leading ports in Africa and in Mediterranean sea, and both vessels will return to Tallinn in October 2021. During the charter, the vessel will be operated by Tallink Grupp’s technical crew.
Tallink has previous experience of chartering vessels to the Mediterranean from a decade ago when different company vessels were chartered to the region by regional operators on short-term charters over a period of four years. Thus, operating in the region is familiar to Tallink Grupp and the company’s masters and crew.
Commenting on the charter agreement, Tallink Grupp’s CEO Paavo Nõgene said:
“We are pleased we have managed to secure another charter agreement for our vessels this year and they don’t have to wait idly in the port for travel restrictions to ease and travelling to resume. Even if the charter is short-term for 100 days, it is work for the vessel and our crew for 100 days.
“Since we already have previous experience with similar charters from approximately ten years ago, we have good level of knowledge as to what to expect and our crew already have experience with sailing in the region.
“We will continue to work on other opportunities for securing work for our vessels and crew while we wait for the COVID storm to pass. At the same time, of course, we will also continue to steadily re-open routes between our home markets as restrictions ease and travelling is no longer taboo.”
AS Tallink Grupp is one of the leading providers of passenger and cargo transport services in the northern Baltic Sea region. The company’s fleet consists of 15 vessels and the company operates various routes under the brands of Tallink and Silja Line. Tallink Grupp’s shares are listed on the Nasdaq Tallinn Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Helsinki Stock Exchange.