Due to a positive development on the Ghent-Gothenburg route DFDS has decided to reshuffle ships on the Gothenburg-Immingham and the Gothenburg-Ghent routes.

The routes are served by the six modern and efficient sister ships built in Flensburg between 2003 and 2006. The three vessels serving on Gothenburg-Immingham have all been extended by 30 metres, thus gaining 25 per cent extra cargo capacity.

"The Gothenburg-Immingham route is today characterized by overcapacity because of recession in the UK and the entry of a new operator in the market. This excess capacity can, however, be very useful on our route between Gothenburg and Ghent where we have recently seen an encouraging development, not least supported by growing volumes for Volvo. For this reason we have decided to reshuffle on the routes from the beginning of June," says Senior Vice President Kell Robdrup, head of DFDS' North Sea business.

The reshuffle means that:

Gothenburg-Ghent will from 4 June be serviced by: FICARIA SEAWAYS, TOR FREESIA and TOR BEGONIA. The ships each offer a cargo capacity of 4,650 lane metres. We will offer five weekly departures against currently six.

Gothenburg-Immingham will from 4 June be serviced by PRIMULA SEAWAYS, PETUNIA SEAWAYS and MAGNOLIA SEAWAYS. The ships each offer a cargo capacity of 3,831 lane metres. We will maintain six weekly departures, and the sailing schedules will remain unchanged. It is a pleasure for us to be able to utilize the flexibility of our large network for the benefit of our customers in the important markets in Sweden and the UK. Thus we are able to increase the cargo capacity in line with the needs of our customers on the Gothenburg-Ghent route, and reduce capacity on the Gothenburg-Immingham route where it is not needed. It also a pleasure that customers have welcomed the change, says Kell Robdrup. The ships transport goods such as trailers, new cars, paper, steel, containers and various equipment.

Further information:

Kell Robdrup, SVP, tel + 45 29 12 35 34