With P&O Ferries’ recent agreement to enter into an additional and separate space charter agreement with the third ferry operator on Dover-Calais, Irish Ferries, the terms of a continuing space charter arrangement would change, according to the company's release.
Ferry market leader on the Dover Strait DFDS has assessed that DFDS is in a better commercial position by operating outside a space charter agreement at this point in time:
“While we continue to welcome collaboration opportunities to further improve the efficiency of our ferry operations on the Dover Strait, we believe that we best service our customers and the market by leveraging our unique value proposition of operating two routes out of Dover - to Calais and to Dunkerque - outside a space charter structure”, says Filip Werne Hermann, VP and Head of BU Channel and Baltics and continues:
“DFDS will continue to deliver reliable and efficient ferry services and focus on providing premium ferry service offerings on the Dover Strait for both our freight and passenger customers by leveraging our company values and our fleet of six vessels. Furthermore, we are continuing our efforts to decarbonise our cross-Channel fleet which will further strengthen our offerings in the future”.
The space charter agreement was entered into in May 2021 and will end when the contractual notice period is complete at the end of August 2024.