Estonia
Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...
n
ferry
A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...
company which operates two routes between the Estonian mainland and the islands of
Hiiumaa
Hiiumaa (, ) is the second largest island in Estonia and is part of the West Estonian archipelago, in the Baltic Sea. It has an area of 989 km2 and is 22 km from the Estonian mainland. Its largest town is Kärdla. It is located within H ...
and
Muhu
Muhu (also called Muhumaa in Estonian), is an island in the West Estonian archipelago of the Baltic Sea. With an area of it is the third largest island belonging to Estonia, after Saaremaa and Hiiumaa.
Together with neighbouring smaller isl ...
in the
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden and the North and Central European Plain.
The sea stretches from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from ...
. (Muhu is connected by a
causeway
A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet Tra ...
to Estonia's largest island,
Saaremaa
Saaremaa is the largest island in Estonia, measuring . The main island of Saare County, it is located in the Baltic Sea, south of Hiiumaa island and west of Muhu island, and belongs to the West Estonian Archipelago. The capital of the island i ...
subsidiary
A subsidiary, subsidiary company or daughter company is a company owned or controlled by another company, which is called the parent company or holding company. Two or more subsidiaries that either belong to the same parent company or having a s ...
of the
Port of Tallinn
Port of Tallinn ( et, Tallinna Sadam) is the biggest port authority in Estonia. Taking into account both cargo and passenger traffic, it is one of the largest port enterprises of the Baltic Sea.
Port of Tallinn is a publicly listed company manag ...
Väinameri
The Väinameri ( Estonian for ''Strait Sea'' or ''Sea of Straits'') or Väinameri Sea is a strait and sub- bay of the Baltic Sea, located between the West Estonian Archipelago and the Estonian mainland, within western Estonia.
It is the northern ...
are operated by TS Laevad.
History
''TS Laevad'' replaced the previous operator, '' SLK'', on 1 October 2016 after submitting a
public procurement
Government procurement or public procurement is the procurement of goods, services and works on behalf of a public authority, such as a government agency. Amounting to 12 percent of global GDP in 2018, government procurement accounts for a subst ...
bid 64 million euros less than its predecessor. It is contracted to operate the routes until 2026.
As none of ''TS Laevads new ferries were delivered in time for the start of the company's contract, three vessels from Vjatšeslav Leedo's Saaremaa Shipping Company (''SLK'') were chartered as an interim solution. The
Sefine Shipyard
Sefine Shipyard ( tr, Sefine Tersanesi) is located in Yalova Province, Turkey. It builds a wide variety of ships including tugboats, fireboats, passenger/car ferries and well boats.
Overview
Sefine Shipyard, which is owned by the Sefine Denizcil ...
in Turkey and the
Remontowa
Remontowa (full name: Gdańska Stocznia "Remontowa" im. J. Piłsudskiego S.A.) is a company and shipyard in Gdańsk, Poland. The yard specialises in ship repair and conversions. ''Remontowa S.''A. is one of 26 companies that make up the Remontowa ...
shipyard in Poland paid ''TS Laevad'' a total of nearly €11 million in late fees. All four new ferries were in service by the end of April 2017.
In 2018, the company's ferries carried a total of 2.3 million passengers and 999,000 vehicles.
In 2019 the ferry Tõll had batteries installed which were expected to reduce the vessel's diesel consumption by 20%. It thus became the first hybrid passenger vessel in Estonia. In 2021 the
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body o ...
committed to financing the full electrification of the ferry Piret, with diesel engines being used only in severe ice conditions.
In July 2021 Tõll collided with the berth at Kuivastu Harbour causing damage to the berth, the ferry and some vehicles on board including that of
Estonian president
The president of the Republic of Estonia ( et, Eesti Vabariigi President) is the head of state of the Republic of Estonia. The current president is Alar Karis, elected by Parliament on 31 August 2021, replacing Kersti Kaljulaid.
Estonia is ...
Kersti Kaljulaid
Kersti Kaljulaid (; born 30 December 1969) is an Estonian politician who served as the fifth president of Estonia between 2016 and 2021. She was also the first and only female head of state of Estonia since the country declared independence in ...
Leiger_at_Quay_10_in_Port_of_Tallinn_11_December_2016.jpg,
Piret at Quay 8 in Port of Tallinn 6 April 2017.jpg,
Tiiu at Quay 10 in Port of Tallinn 4 April 2017.jpg,
Tõll in Kuivastu (cropped).jpg,
Regula-port Kuivastu VIII.2017 (cropped).jpg,
See also
*
Kihnu Veeteed
Kihnu Veeteed ("Kihnu Waterways") is a ferry company which operates eight routes in Estonia. It is registered on the island of Kihnu in the Gulf of Riga, and runs a fleet of eight passenger ferries.Articles about ''TS Laevad'' on ERR News