Interferry

Interferry CEO Mike Corrigan, Interferry Chairman Tim Mooney and outgoing Interferry President Ronny Moriana Glindemann of FRS Iberia Maroc / DFDS closed out a very successful #Interferry2024, our 48th Annual Interferry Conference in Marrakech. Incoming Interferry President Guido Grimaldi invited delegates to Interferry2025. The Interferry flag was officially passed to Guido and the Grimaldi Group, hosts of #Interferry2025 in #Sorrento, Italy which will be held October 4 – 8, 2025. Join us in Sorrento!

Interferry welcomed three new board members and a new president who were recently confirmed at #Interferry2024 in Marrakech. Coming on board are Greta Bédard, Matteo Catani, Steve Nevey and our new president Guido Grimaldi. Greta is the first woman to hold the position of President and Chief Executive Officer at the Société des traversiers du Québec. Matteo is the Chief Executive Officer of GNV, a leading ferry company in the western Mediterranean Sea. Steve is the assistant secretary (executive director) for the Washington State Ferries Division of the Washington State Department of Transportation. Guido is the Corporate Commercial Director of Short Sea Shipping Services for the Grimaldi Group. We would also like to thank the outgoing directors and officers for their contributions to Interferry and the ferry industry: Bernard Dwyer, Per Westling and Ronny Moriana Glindemann. Bernard served as president during 2023 and moved to the board in 2024. Per, managing director at Stena RoRo, served a 12 year term as a director. Ronny, managing director of FRS Iberia Maroc / DFDS, served as Interferry president for 2024 and helped deliver a successful Interferry2024 conference. 

A special thanks to Alexandra Ferreira de Carvalho, President of TTSL - Transtejo Soflusa for providing Interferry CEO Mike Corrigan with a tour of their impressive #ferry operations on the Tagus River in #Lisbon, #Portugal. TTSL’s shift to zero emissions is noteworthy with five vessels already operating solely on batteries and five more to come. 

The #Interferry2024 #TechnicalTour was an event to remember. Hosted by DFDS and FRS Iberia Maroc / DFDS managing director Ronny Moriana Glindemann, over 100 participants took part in the tour that took us from Marrakech to Tangier by air, and from Tangier to Tarifa via the DFDS vessel “Tarifa Jet”. After flying from Marrakech to Tangier, we were treated to amazing Moroccan cuisine, entertainment and our own fez hats at #RestaurantHamadi. Later we spent the night at the lovely #ElMinzahHotel. The next day we boarded the high-speed ferry “Tarifa Jet” for the trip across the Strait of Gibraltar to Tarifa. We were lucky to have Robert Clifford of Incat Tasmania – the designer and builder of the “Tarifa Jet” – along for the ride. The “Tarifa Jet”, Incat’s Hull 043, is an 86-metre wave-piercing catamaran, built for swift and comfortable crossings between Tarifa, Spain, and Tangier, Morocco. This versatile high-speed ferry boasts capacity for up to 900 passengers and 200 vehicles, offering a smooth journey across the Strait of Gibraltar. Powered by four advanced diesel engines and four powerful waterjets, Hull 043 delivers exceptional performance. Equipped with an active ride control system, the vessel enhances passenger comfort by reducing motion for a steadier ride, even at high speeds. While on board we were served delicious pastries and champagne, making for a wonderful journey across the water. Upon arriving in Tarifa, the participants went their separate ways to continue their travels or make their way home. All in all it was a Technical Tour like no other!

The Africa Ferry Safety Workshop took place on Wednesday, Oct 30 at Interferry2024 in Marrakech. Building on the success of the April 2024 Africa Ferry Safety Seminar in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, the workshop brought together African operators and regulators, maritime academies, class societies, MOWCA - MARITIME ORGANIZATION OF WEST AND CENTRAL AFRICA, the International Maritime Organization and members of Interferry’s Regulatory and Domestic Safety Committees. Promoting the highest standards in domestic Ferry Safety has been a key strategic objective of Interferry for many years. Through collaboration with African ferry leaders, we aim to create a comprehensive African Ferry Safety Program that will improve safety standards across the continent and contribute to reducing the high level of incidents in some of its states. Participants were divided into groups with Interferry leads to seek out, by degrees of importance, the issues of greatest concern to the African leaders. The ultimate goal being to bring focus on those concerns so that the IMO and Interferry, together with input from MOWCA, can devise initiatives to assist with improving African ferry safety. It is hoped that we can plan a future event in 2025. Participants included: Interferry and IMO leads Mike Corrigan, Johan Roos, Edwin Pang, Oliver Weiss, Tim Mooney, John W. Bertell, John Garner, FNI, FIMarEST, CMarTec, CMMar and Dr. Jose Matheickal (IMO). Workshop participants: Andreas Ullrich, Bureau Veritas | Marine & Offshore; Rose Appiah Okyere, Volta Lake Transport Co, #Ghana; David Okafor, Caverton, #Nigeria; Brice Martin-Castex, IMO; Ali Mzee Ally, Zanzibar Seafarers union (ZASU); Eru A Takem, MOWCA; Dr. Paul Adalikwu, MOWCA; Michele Landro, RINA; Mohamed Abass Saleh, SHIPCO, Tanzania; Olufemi Obayomi-Davies BSc MSc MNSE COREN, Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), Nigeria; Mohamed Briouig, ISEM, #Morocco; Mamadou Mariko, MOWCA; Majid Belhamine, Morocco; Chet Pastrana, Archipelago Philippine Ferries, Philippines; Ukeme Sunday, LASWA, Nigeria; Mustapha Adamah, GHANA MARITIME AUTHORITY; Mohamed Drissi, International Maritime Rescue Federation (IMRF), Morocco; Mary Ann Pastrana, Archipelago Philippine Ferries, Philippines; Oluseyi Abidemi, Caverton, Nigeria; Helen Obisakin-Williams, MOWCA; Eno-Richard Egbe, MOWCA. #interferry2024 #africa #ferrysafety

The second Ferry Leaders Panel of #Interferry2024 was a lively discussion – moderated by Interferry CEO Mike Corrigan – with ferry leaders from across the globe as they shared their perspectives on safety, security and sustainability as small and medium sized vessel ferry operators. Participating on the stellar panel were Götz Becker of FRS in #Germany; Greta Bédard of Société des traversiers du Québec (STQ) in #Canada; Will Dady of StraitNZ in #NewZealand; Tim Mooney of Fire Island Ferries in the USA; and Mark Wilson of Northumberland Ferries Limited / Bay Ferries Limited in Canada. 

In Session 11, Dr. Roberta Weisbrod, Executive Director of the Worldwide Ferry Safety Association (WFSA) announced the winners of the 11th Annual WFSA Student Competition for a Safe Affordable Ferry. The competition criteria called for a RoPax vessel to accommodate 150-200 passengers, as well as space for cargo and 15-20 four-wheeler vehicles, which could include lorries and trucks. The vessel is intended to ply a shallow-drafted stretch of the Niger River in southern Nigeria’s Anambra State, from Onitsha Jetty to Idah Jetty and from Onitsha Jetty to Ndoni Jetty. The TOR for this year’s competition were drafted by Nigerian Navy Lieutenant David Okafor. Dr. Weisbrod commented that “The competition comes as Nigeria has rapidly created a robust and sustainable ferry system for the city of Lagos. The question now is whether the inland waterways of Nigeria – the Niger River – could enjoy similar successes?” The first-place award winning team from Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) Surabaya designed an aluminum catamaran powered by CNG with alternative power sources including solar and batteries. The second-place award winning team is from the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology in Dhaka. The design is for an aluminum catamaran hull, 40m length, 142 tons would cost around $0.8 million. The main fuel is CNG to run the electric motor, with solar power supplements. Judges considered the concept of a tiltable propeller system as brilliant and the hydrokinetic turbine as interesting. The third-place award winning team is from University of Indonesia in Jakarta. Their steel barge hull design with the pre-cut fabrication technique clearly reduces the cost of production, estimated at $1.5 million. The vessel is powered by diesel-CNG with solar power supplement. There would be fore and aft loading. The tilt up thrust-master is good for maintenance and repair. Group photo L to R  Rifqianda Fadlurrahman, team captain of 3rd place University of Indonesia; Supapan Pichaironarongsonkram of Chao Phraya Express Boat and Interferry Board member; John Waterhouse of Elliott Bay Design Group; Mary Ann Pastrana of Archipelago Philippine Ferries and WFSA Board; Roberta Weisbrod; Tim Mooney of Fire Island Ferries and Interferry Board Chair; David Okafor, developer of design specs and judge; Prof. Agoes Santsi; and Prof. Ahmad Baidowi (ITS Surabaya); Quito Abian Iqtarib, captain of ITS Surabaya team; and Aleik Nurwahyudy, judge. 

During the timely Session 14, “Safety Spotlight: Batteries and Alternative Fuels”, attendees heard about the future of battery electric solutions and alternative fuels for powering ferries and the vehicles they carry. This session explored the fire and safety considerations for building and powering the electric vessels of the future, as well as the transportation of battery powered vehicles onboard. The session, moderated by Claes Berglund of Stena AB, included presentations by: Joep Bollerman of Lloyd's Register – Safety Spotlight: Batteries and Alternative Fuels Sverre Eriksen of DNV – Battery Propulsion: Rule Development and Learning from Incidents Kim Clifford of Incat Tasmania – Safety First: Navigating the Construction of the World’s Largest Battery Electric Ferry Martin Carlsson of Stena Teknik – Sweden Safety Spotlight: Alternative Fueled Ships and Cargo Maria Garbarini, MRINA of RINA – Innovative Strategies for Transporting Alternative Fueled Vehicles on Ro-Ro/Ro-Pax Ships #interferry2024

During Session 13 Adam A. Triolo shared an update on REGENT’s first full-scale #seaglider and how the all-electric wing-in ground-effect vehicle will deliver a safe, high-speed, sustainable transportation solution. #interferry2024

Presentations during Session 12, "Building a Ferry Sustainable Future", explored building the next generation of sustainable vessels from the perspectives of shipbuilders, designers and operators. Speakers in this very topical session included: Jesper Aagesen of DFDS – How DFDS is Working on a Ferry Sustainable Future Iain Percy of Artemis Technologies Ltd – Navigating the Future: Zero Emissions Fast Passenger Transport Solutions for Today and Tomorrow Mika Laurilehto of Rauma Marine Constructions Oy – FUSE: Electrification of Short Sea Shipping Kevin Bartoy of Washington State Ferries – Building a Sustainable Future at Washington State Ferries Juan Pablo Molina of Baleària – Baleària’s Ferry Sustainable Future Anders Ørgård of OSK Design moderated the session.