The Villum Clausen ferry, which in 2000 the Guinness Book of World Records named the world's fastest ferry at the time, uses nearly three times as much fuel to move a tonne of cargo or passengers as a larger vessel operating on the same route, according to a report in local news site Bornholm.nu.
The ferry can sail from Ronne on the Danish island of Bornholm to Ystad, Sweden at 45 knots, while a larger ferry on that route, Leonora Christina, moves at 37 knots, but Villum Clausen uses 2.7 times as much fuel per tonne moved to gain a little over 1.2 times the speed, according to calculations by Bornholm Passenger Association.
Villum Clausen has a capacity of 286 cars and 1,055 passengers.
Fuel costs have become a matter of increasing concern for ferry operators in recent months.
Baltic ferry operator AS Tallink Grupp said its fuel costs jumped 13 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2012, while builders have been working on new fuel-saving ferry designs including vessels powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) or wind and sun.
