EMEA News
Five Ferry Operators Win €48 million in EU Grants for Scrubber Projects
Interferry Monday announced in an emailed press release that five of its members will receive €48 million ($53.09 million) in grants from the European Union (EU) to offset the cost of installing exhaust scrubber systems for compliance with Emissions Control Area (ECA) rules.
€18 million ($19.91 million) is said to have been awarded to the Grimaldi Group's Finnlines Plc, €9 million ($9.95 million) to DFDS, €8 million ($8.85 million) to Stena Line, €7 million ($7.74 million) to Brittany Ferries, and €6 million ($6.64 million) to Scandlines.
The grants are said to come as a part of the EU's Connect Europe Facility's (CEF's) multi-annual Motorways of the Seas programme.
The European Commission, which invited bids last September for CEF's current phase of financial support, is said to have received a record 700 applications, 276 of which were recommended to the CEF Committee in June, and marking a reported groundbreaking €13.1 billion ($14.49 billion) round of investment in transport infrastructure.
Interferry says that it arranged EU and industry delegates to examine a scrubber unit on the DFDS ro-ro vessel Primula in Ghent in March during European Shipping Week.
"We were very glad to show officials the enormous economic and technical challenges involved in retrofitting this equipment," said Johan Roos, Regulatory Affairs Director at Interferry.
"It is extremely gratifying that our members' efforts have now been recognised in the shape of financial assistance."
In June, it was reported that the Grimaldi Group ordered its tenth installation of Alfa Laval's PureSOx scubber solution for a Finnlines vessel, the fifth Finnlines vessel to receive the scrubber solution.
