The European Commission has given Danish ferry operator DFDS the seal of approval on its purchase of Norfolkline.
The €346 million deal still leaves previous owner Maersk with a 31% stake in Norfolkline but it is expected the company will eventually sell the shares after a lock-in period of 24 months.
The European Commission required DFDS to arrange a “space charter agreement” on some Denmark-UK routes in order to approve the sale and DFDS has now done that with Stena Line.
The new owner says it believes new synergies will save the company $30-$36 million annually.
As yet, neither DFDS nor Norfolkline, which operates a cross channel service from Dover to Dunkerque as well as Irish and North Sea routes, has offered further news of job cuts or relocations or changes in services.
by Dinah Hatch
