In a traditional keel-laying ceremony at Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft (FSG), the first hull segment of the newbuilding number 782, weighing more than 50 tons, was lowered by crane onto the blocks. In accordance with maritime custom, a 1-euro coin was placed under the keel for good fortune. The keel laying of the RoRo ferry to be built was performed by Philipp Maracke, CEO of FSG, Klaus Müller, project manager of this newbuilding project at the classification society DNV GL, Thomas Jansen, chairman of the FSG works council, and Flensburg’s mayor Simone Lange.
“For FSG, today’s keel-laying marks an important milestone, as this is the first order after restructuring and relaunching the shipyard in September 2020. This shipbuilding project is also significant for our 380 employees, who are now back to doing what they do best: building highly efficient ships,” said the shipyard’s CEO Philipp Maracke. The fact that this vessel is a proven design is of particular advantage both for the buyer as well as for FSG, he stressed. „As RoRo type 4100 was developed by us and built here repeatedly, we are very familiar with its construction. That makes it extraordinarily easy for the shipyard to ramp up.” The training of young skilled workers will also benefit: for the first time, trainees from the 3rd year of their apprenticeship will be deployed operationally in construction. Currently, a total of 36 young people are learning eight different professions at FSG.
IVP Ship Invest has ordered this RoRo ferry for completion by April 2022. In addition, the customer is placing an option for a second vessel. This order has a total volume of 140 million euros. IVP Ship Invest is a company owned by Lars Windhorst, founder of Tennor Holding. The commissioned 210-metre-long ship – FSG’s newbuilding number 782 – features the most innovative technology “made in Germany”: a market-wide unrivalled low fuel consumption as well as an efficient, unique loading concept had already convinced numerous renowned RoRo shipping companies to rely on ships from Flensburg before FSG’s new start, making the shipyard the world market leader in this segment.
Flensburger Schiffbau-Gesellschaft has set itself another goal. “The shipyard will diversify in the future and we will increasingly act as a reliable partner to the German Navy and in international naval shipbuilding,” Philipp Maracke stated. “To this end, we can build on earlier projects, as FSG continues to have a good reputation as a naval shipyard, even though we focussed on merchant ships in recent years.”
Sophisticated projects with a high degree of technical differentiation and individualisation will continue to be “made in Flensburg” on the northern German Firth. The innovative edge will even be extended, as the shipyard looks to address the topic of zero emission, thus achieving ecological and economic market leadership in special shipbuilding, explained CEO Philipp Maracke.
Flensburg, 30 December 2020
Technical data of the RoRo ferry newbuilding 782:
Length: 210 metres
Width: 26 metres
Gross registered tonnes: 32,770
Main engines output: 2 x 9,600 kilowatts
Track metres: 4,007
35 cabins for 12 truck drivers and 34 crew
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