RUSADIR © Balearia

Baleària exercise option to buy RUSADIR

FerryBaleària announced that they exercised an option to buy the LNG ro-pax RUSADIR, which has been chartered by them from Siem Industries since April this year. RUSADIR, which operates on the Malaga-Melilla route, has capacity for 1,670 passengers and up to 2,600 lane metres of cargo. RUSADIR was initially ordered by Brittany Ferries at Flensburger Schiffbau Gesellshaft (FSG) to become HONFLEUR.

RUSADIR has 261 cabins, two cafes, a restaurant, a shop, a children's area, a cinema room, a prayer room, a terrace and numerous lounge areas.

The 187m x 31m HONFLEUR was to become Brittany Ferries new LNG-powered flagship, when ordered from Germany's Flensburger Schiffbau Gesellshaft (FSG) in 2017 at a contract price of EUR 200 million.

However, the newbuilding contract was cancelled by the French ferry operator in 2020 after a number of shipyard delays. HONFLEUR was to have replaced the ageing NORMANDIE on Brittany Ferries' Portsmouth-Ouistreham (Caen) service.

Following the demise of FSG, the ownership of HONFLEUR passed into the hands of the then Norwegian owners of the German ferry shipbuilding specialist, Siem Industries. The unfinished vessel was towed to Norway's Fosen Yard, in Rissa, near Trondheim; for completion and then sale or charter to a suitable interested party.

Dec 22 2023