Farewell, Your Majesty: The ferry ‘Kronprins Frederik’ was in service for Scandlines for over 40 years. The ship is now to be scrapped in Denmark.
The ‘Kronprins Frederik’ set sail from the port of Puttgarden for the last time at the weekend. On Monday, the ship reached its final destination at the port of Esbjerg, where it is to be recycled.
The ferry – named after the then Prince and now King of Denmark, Frederik X – was laid down in 1979 at the Nakskov Skibsværft (on the island of Lolland) and entered service two years later. Until 1997, it operated for the Danish State Railways (DSB) on the Great Belt between the towns of Korsør and Nyborg in Denmark. Since then and up to the present day, the ferry has been operated by the shipping company Scandlines – initially as a passenger and cargo ferry on the Rostock–Gedser route and, most recently, as a cargo ferry on the Puttgarden–Rødby route. Its sister ships are the ”Prins Joachim“ (now “Morocco Star“) and the “Dronning Ingrid“, which is operated by Mercy Ships as the hospital ship “Africa Mercy“.
The ship is 152 metres long and 23.7 metres wide. With a gross tonnage of 10,606, the “Kronprins Frederik” could accommodate up to 1,400 passengers and 18 crew members. According to Scandlines, the vessel has carried millions of passengers, vehicles and trains over the years. At the weekend, however, only the captain and his crew were on board when the vessel set sail from the port of Puttgarden.
“After 45 years of loyal service, we sent the ferry on its very last voyage on Saturday evening,” says Michael Guldmann Petersen, COO of Scandlines. On this final voyage, the ship passed several of the ports it had served during its 45 years of service. The journey took it across the Great Belt in Denmark, passing under the bridge, before it set course round Skagen and on to its final destination at the port of Esbjerg on the Danish west coast. It arrived there on Monday afternoon. The ship will be recycled by Smedegaarden, a company included on the European list of approved ship recycling organisations.
“These have been emotional days for us and, not least, for everyone who served on board the ‘M/F Kronprins Frederik’,” said COO Petersen. “Several crew members have worked on the ferry for many years. It is with a heavy heart that we have to say goodbye to the ship. It has served us well and reliably over many years and provided us with many wonderful moments at sea.”
The “Kronprins Frederik“ was in service on the Puttgarden–Rødby route until early March, before Scandlines’ new cargo ferry, “The Baltic Whale“, took over the service.
“With ‘The Baltic Whale’ entering service, we’ve gained some new, fresh energy,” explained Petersen. “The ferry is one of the largest in the world that can be powered exclusively by shore-side electricity. This brings us a big step closer to our goal of operating without direct emissions by 2040.”
Scandlines had been offering the “Kronprins Frederik” for sale for some time with a view to continuing its operation. However, no interested buyer was found for the vessel.
