The German-Danish Scandlines shipping company continued to maintain its market share in the overall Baltic Sea ferry traffic sector in the first half of 2004 and further expanded its position in a number of segments. A total of 492,722 trucks (+7.8 %), 1,843,608 cars (+10.5 %), 8,951,001 passengers (+5.5 %), 41,228 buses/coaches (-3.6 %) and 56,140 railcars (+4.5 %) were carried on the Scandlines AG routes over the first six months of this year.
The growth rates on the crossings between Germany and Denmark, Denmark and Sweden, plus the developments in cargo traffic on the routes between Germany and Sweden as well as to the Baltic States made a particularly valuable contribution to these positive results.
Germany-Denmark services
Scandlines was also able to continue the positive development on the routes between Germany and Denmark in the first half of this year, with 8.5% more passengers, 14.5% more cars and 5.4% more trucks carried than in the same period of the previous year.
In addition to the continuing positive developments on the Puttgarden-Rødby line, the growth rates on the Rostock-Gedser route were particularly impressive, with the positive trend of the last few years maintained in the passenger (+7.6%), car (+8.1%), bus/coach (+7.5 %) and truck (+12.1 %) segments.
Passangers
Services | Jan. - Jun. 2004 | Changes absolut | in % |
Puttgarden - Rødby | 2.877.808 | +232.609 | +8,8 |
Rostock – Gedser | 559.985 | +39.562 | +7,6 |
Sassnitz - Rønne | 33.381 | +23 | +0,1 |
Total | 3.471.174 | +272.194 | +8,5 |
Cars
Services | Jan. - Jun. 2004 | Changes absolut | in % |
Puttgarden - Rødby | 632.350 | +98.792 | +15,6 |
Rostock – Gedser | 90.289 | +6.751 | +8,1 |
Sassnitz - Rønne | 9.400 | -233 | -2,4 |
Total | 832.039 | +105.310 | |
Buses/Coaches
Services | Jan. - Jun. 2004 | Changes absolut | in % |
Puttgarden - Rødby | 15.967 | +858 | +5,7 |
Rostock – Gedser | 7.496 | +520 | +7,5 |
Sassnitz - Rønne | 131 | -12 | -8,4 |
Total | | +1.366 | +6,1 |
Trucks
Services | Jan. - Jun. 2004 | Changes absolut | in % |
Puttgarden - Rødby | 145.601 | +5.504 | +3,9 |
Rostock – Gedser | 35.423 | +3.825 | +12,1 |
Sassnitz - Rønne | 119 | +2 | +1,7 |
Total | | +9.331 | +5,4 |
Germany-Sweden services
Transport volumes in the cargo segment grew by 8.1% on the direct routes between Germany and Sweden operated together with the company’s Swedish partner, Scandlines AB, in the first half of 2004.
Thanks to the improvements in the range of services offered to Scandlines cargo customers through the increased capacity of the ferry, the “Mecklenburg-Vorpommern”, 7% more cargo units were transported on the Rostock-Trelleborg line during the first six months of 2004. The double-digit growth rates in the conveyance of trucks on the Sassnitz-Trelleborg route (+ 12.3 %) were also outstanding.
There was evidence of a new trend in the transportation of goods railcars in the first half-year, with the volume increasing by 5.4% on the Sassnitz-Trelleborg line in the first half of this year following a number of years of decline.
The number of passengers carried on the Sassnitz-Trelleborg route fell by 11.1% due to the decline in shopping tourism from Sweden to Germany, while further growth of 9.5% was recorded for the Rostock-Trelleborg line
Passangers
Services | Jan. - Jun. 2004 | Changes absolut | in % |
Rostock - Trelleborg | 138.569 | +12.001 | +9,5 |
Sassnitz - Trelleborg | 324.782 | -40.631 | -11,1 |
Total | 463.351 | -28.630 | -5,8 |
Cars
Services | Jan. bis Jun. 2004 | Changes absolut | in % |
Rostock - Trelleborg | 20.565 | +916 | +4,7 |
Sassnitz - Trelleborg | 73.168 | -1.635 | -2,2 |
Total | 93.733 | -719 | -0,8 |
Trucks
Services | Jan. - Jun. 2004 | Changes absolut | in % |
Rostock - Trelleborg | 676 | +105 | +18,4 |
Sassnitz - Trelleborg | 1.628 | -367 | -18,4 |
Total | | -262 | -10,2 |
Rail units
Services | Jan. - Jun. 2004 | Changes absolut | in % |
Rostock - Trelleborg | 13.240 | -856 | -6,1 |
Sassnitz - Trelleborg | 34.925 | +1.794 | +5,4 |
Total | 48.165 | +938 | +2,0 |
Baltic State lines and Finland
In the first half of 2004, Scandlines’ transport volumes also rose in the most important market segments on the 6 Baltic State services.
A total of 61,684 trucks and trailers (+17.2 %), 54,956 passengers (+24.1 %) and 4,436 cars (-23.0 %) were transported on the routes, which are principally characterised by cargo traffic.
The driving force for the growth of Scandlines’ traffic to and from the Baltic States is the Kiel – Klaipeda service operated jointly with the company’s partner, LISCO BALTIC SERVICE. The introduction of a two-vessel system, the reduction of crossing times by up to 10 hours to 21 hours per crossing and the increase in weekly transport capacities by 40% in summer last year have gone a long way to substantially enhancing the competitiveness and attractiveness of this service compared with the overland route. In the first half of the year, 26,018 passengers (+ 21.3%) plus 30,190 (+ 16.8%) trucks and trailers were transported on this line alone.
The development of rail goods traffic was satisfactory on the Sassnitz (Mukran) – Klaipeda line, with the result of 3,741 transported goods railcars (+62.2 %) exceeding expectations for this year.
It was not possible to achieve the above-average growth rates of the past few years on the Rostock-Liepaja line in the first half of 2004. With 7,084 passengers (-18.6 %), 615 cars (-26.0 %) and 7,654 cargo units (-9.2 %) carried, transport volumes consolidated as expected in the course of EU eastward enlargement.
A total of 20,431 trucks and trailers were transported on the Rostock-Helsinki and Helsinki-Muuga Finland cargo routes operated by Scandlines in the first half of 2004. Cargo volumes increased by 96.1% on the Rostock-Helsinki line alone with the deployment of the FS “Aurora”.
Outlook for the second half of 2004
In the early summer of 2003, Scandlines took a series of forward-looking investment decisions. With the acquisition of T&E ESCO RoRo Line AS and the launch of the Nynäshamn-Ventspils ferry line, Scandlines AG continued with the strategic expansion of its route network towards Northern and Eastern Europe in 2003.
However, Scandlines is also constantly broadening its range of services in the company’s core market, i.e. the triangle between Germany, Denmark and Sweden. In spring this year, the shipping line increased its car transport capacity by 40% on the Puttgarden-Rødby route by fitting additional car decks on the four double-ended ferries and further optimising port logistics in order to take account of the continuing rise in car holiday traffic to Denmark and Sweden. Waiting times for peak departures in the summer months are now a thing of the past.
In addition to the Puttgarden-Rødby and Helsingør-Helsingborg services, the Port of Rostock is increasingly establishing itself as an important nerve centre in the Scandlines route network, as a result of which the Scandlines shipping line will be expanding its intermodal transport activities on the Rostock-Trelleborg line from September 2004.
Scandlines will further enhance the attractiveness of its Rostock-Gedser service from January 2005: the fitting of more powerful engines to the ferry vessels, the “Kronprins Frederik” and the “Prins Joachim”, will reduce the crossing time to 100 minutes from the present 120 minutes and also enable capacities to be increased.
The Scandlines Group, in which Deutsche Bahn AG and the Danish Ministry of Transport each have a 50% holding, presently operates 17 ferry services between Germany, Denmark and Sweden, as well as to the Baltic States and Finland.
Rostock, 7 August 2004
Passenger 
