Company announcement
No.: 15/2008
Copenhagen, 27 May 2008
Extensive improvement plan to safeguard earnings at DFDS Seaways
DFDS is to close an unprofitable route between Norway and England on 1 September
2008. At the same time DFDS Seaways' organisation will be changed and reduced by
around 340 jobs at sea and on land. The expected savings will amount to around
DKK 60 million a year from 2009.
As previous information has already established, DFDS' business unit Passenger
Shipping has had an unsatisfactory trend in recent years. Against this
background, an analysis of operations was carried out earlier in the year with
the aim of creating an improvement plan, which can ensure the business unit has
a more satisfactory economic development.
Phase 1 of this improvement plan has now finished and includes the following
measures:
The route between Bergen-Haugesund-Stavanger and Newcastle will close on 1
September 2008. Despite great efforts from the crew and the land-based employees
it has not been able to live up to the targets of a profitable result.
Operations on the route will remain unchanged during the summer season. The
closure affects up to 270 jobs onboard.
The closure of the route and analyses of the business unit further provide the
opportunity for bringing in a new, flatter and more focused organisation at DFDS
Seaways. The new organisation means that the country and head office
organisations will be reduced by a total of around 70 positions.
“Even though DFDS is prepared to help those made redundant this will be a
testing and difficult process for the affected employees. However, these actions
are necessary measures in order to turn around DFDS Seaways' economy and to
create long-term, sustainable development,” says Niels Smedegaard, CEO of DFDS
A/S.
Operations on the Bergen route have been running at a loss. The closure of the
route and savings in the land-based organisation are expected as soon as in 2008
to offset the costs associated with closing the route and changes to the
land-based organisation. The improvement plan is not therefore expected to show
significant changes to the expectations for profits for 2008.
The long-term improvement is expected to amount to some DKK 60 million a year,
from 2009 onwards.
QUEEN OF SCANDINAVIA, which sails on the Bergen route, will be sold or chartered
out. The effect of this on the accounts for 2008 is not known at the present
time.
Phase 2 of the plan will commence at the beginning of June and will focus on
improving earnings on the other routes. This work will extend over the coming
months.
Further information: CEO Niels Smedegaard, tel + 45 33 42 34 00
or Communications Manager Gert Jakobsen, tel + 45 24 40 00 43.
DFDS A/S
The DFDS Group operates a leading, sea-based transport network in Northern
Europe that is based on a fleet of 64 ships, comprising cruise ferry ships,
Ro-Ros, combined freight/passenger ships and container ships as well as
terminals and a trailer network linked to the routes. The company has 4,400
employees in 14 countries. DFDS is head-quartered in Copenhagen and is listed on
OMX The Nordic Exchange Copenhagen.
