Øresundslinjen

Øresundslinjen (Swedish: Öresundslinjen) is a ferry company serving the route between Helsingborg, Sweden and Helsingør, Denmark. Until 2018 the company was called HH-Ferries Group, and the trading name Scandlines was used. From 2018 to 2023 the name "ForSea Ferries" was used.

Øresundslinjen
IndustryShipping
Founded1996
Headquarters
Helsingborg
,
Sweden
Area served
Øresund
ServicesPassenger transportation
Freight transportation
Number of employees
750 (2023) Edit this on Wikidata
Websitewww.oresundslinjen.se

The Helsingør–Helsingborg ferry route crosses the narrowest part of the Øresund, taking about 20 minutes to traverse the 4-kilometre (2-nautical-mile) strait. The company owns five vessels, including the sister ships Tycho Brahe, Aurora af Helsingborg, and Hamlet, each of which has capacity for 240 cars and 1,250 passengers.[1][2][3]

History
Tycho Brahe, interior

Øresundslinjen was originally established in 1996 under the name "Sundbroen" ("The Sound Bridge") by the Danish shipowner Per Henriksen. It was sold in 1997 and changed its name to HH-Ferries. In 2001 the company was sold again, this time to the Swedish business group Stena, operating under the Scandlines brand. After further cooperation deals, the company was suddenly owned by the same cooperation as former competitors Scandlines.

In 2011 the competition on the HH Ferry route finished with the larger eating the smaller, with the two Mercandias, IV and VIII being added to the Scandlines-HH Ferries fleet. In 2018 HH-Ferries rebranded as ForSea Ferries as Aurora and Tycho Brahe were reintroduced into service as battery-electric vessels. Around the same time as the rebranding took place, ForSea decided to ditch the Scandlines branding in favour of creating a new, independent brand image that sought to distinguish ForSea as a cleaner and greener service compared to Scandlines.

In 2018 the ferries Tycho Brahe and Aurora af Helsingborg were converted to battery power. They are completely emission-free when in battery mode, reducing their total CO2 emissions by as much as 65%.[3][4][5]

In 2020 Øresundslinjen experienced a reduction of 80% in passenger numbers due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of departures was reduced and seventy staff were made redundant.[6][7]

In January 2023, the Danish and Swedish competition regulators approved the sale of ForSea to the Danish ferry operator Molslinjen.[8] In September 2023 ForSea Ferries was rebranded as "Øresundslinjen".[9]

Fleet

As of 2023, Øresundslinjen owns 5 vessels:

Name Built Tonnage Passengers Notes Images References
Tycho Brahe199111,148 GT1250In service
E-ferry (2018-)		[10][11]
Aurora af Helsingborg199211,148 GT1250In service
E-ferry (2018-)		[12][13]
Hamlet199710,067 GT1000In service
[14][15]
Mercandia IV19894,296 GRT400Replacement & Freight[16][17][18][19]
Mercandia VIII19874,296 GRT400Laid up
[20][21][22]

References
  1. Maritime Denmark. HH Ferries becomes ForSea. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  2. Ferry Shipping News. ForSea Interview with CEO Johan Röstin. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  3. Helsingborgs Dagblad. "Vi tog mer ström än hela Helsingör på en enda laddning – så mycket kraft handlar det om. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  4. ABB. ForSea (formerly HH Ferries Group) completes conversion of the world’s largest battery ferries, powered by ABB. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  5. Smart City Sweden. ForSea – Emission-free ferries. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  6. SVT Nyheter. Coronakrisen har minskat trafiken – stora uppsägningar hos Forsea. Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  7. Dagens Industri. Stora nedskärningar hos krisande rederiet – 70 anställda ska bort, Retrieved 10 February 2021.
  8. Sjöfartstidningen. Molslinjen får grönt ljus för köpet av ForSea. Retrieved 19 January 2023
  9. Faergenyt.dk. ForSea Ferries bliver til Øresundslinjen. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
  10. "M/F Tycho Brahe". ferry-site.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  11. "Tycho Brahe" (in Danish). faergelejet.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  12. "M/F Aurora af Helsingborg". ferry-site.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  13. "Aurora af Helsingborg" (in Danish). faergelejet.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  14. "M/F Hamlet". ferry-site.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  15. "Hamlet" (in Danish). faergelejet.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  16. "M/F Mercandia IV". ferry-site.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  17. "Mercandia IV" (in Danish). faergelejet.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  18. "M/S Mercandia IV" (in Danish). skip-siden.com. Archived from the original on 20 February 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  19. ""Mercandia IV"" (in Danish). faergejournalen.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  20. "M/F Mercandia VIII". ferry-site.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  21. "Mercandia VIII" (in Danish). faergelejet.dk. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
  22. "M/S Mercandia VIII" (in Danish). skip-siden.com. Archived from the original on 20 February 2012. Retrieved 19 October 2023.
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