Silja Line
Encyclopedia
Silja Line is a Finnish cruiseferry
brand operated by the Estonia
n ferry company AS Tallink Grupp
, for car and passenger traffic between Finland
and Sweden
. The former company Silja Oy – today Tallink Silja Oy
– is a subsidiary of Tallink Grupp, handling marketing and sales for Tallink and Silja Line brands in Finland as well as managing Silja's ship employees. Another subsidiary, Tallink Silja AB, handles marketing and sales in Sweden. Strategical corporate management is performed by Tallink Grupp which also own the ships.
As of 2009 four ships service two routes under the Silja Line brand, transporting about three million passengers and 200,000 cars every year. The Silja Line ships has a market share of around 50 percent on the two routes served.
shipping companies, Finland Steamship Company (Finska Ångfartygs Aktiebolaget, FÅA for short) and Steamship Company Bore, started collaborating on Finland–Sweden
traffic. The initial collaboration agreement was terminated in 1909, but re-established in 1910. After World War I
in 1918 a new agreement was made that also included the Swedish Rederi AB Svea
. Originally the collaboration agreement applied only on service between Turku and Stockholm, but was also applied to the Helsinki–Stockholm in 1928. As a precursor to the policies later adopted by Silja Line, each of the three companies ordered a near-identical ship for Helsinki–Stockholm service to coincide with the 1952 Summer Olympics
, held in Helsinki. Eventually only Finland SS Co.'s was ready in time for the olympics. At this time the city of Helsinki constructed the Olympia Terminal in Helsinki's South Harbour, that Silja Line's ships still use.
would be the dominating traffic form in the future, the three collaborating companies decided to form a daughter company, Oy Siljavarustamo / Siljarederiet Ab. The new company started out with used ships which weren't particularly well-fitted for the role they were meant for, but that was about to change when in 1961 Silja took delivery of the new , the first purpose-built car-passenger ferry in the northern Baltic Sea
. Skandia
Despite the establishment of Silja, FÅA, Bore and Svea also continued to operate on the same routes with their own ships. This led to a somewhat complex situation where four different companies were marketed as one entiry. In Finland they went by the name Ruotsinlaivat ("Sweden's Ships" or "Ships to Sweden") whereas in Sweden the preferred terms were Det Samseglande (roughly "the ones that sail together"), Finlandsbåten ("Finland's Ships") or Sverigebåten (Sweden Ships). In both countries the names of all four companies were usually displayed alongside the group identity.
, which was to become Silja Line's main rival for the next two decades. FÅA, Bore and Svea soon realised that a similar arrangement would be preferable to their current fragmented image, and in 1970 a big change was carried out within the organisations: Silja Line was established as a joint marketing and coordination company between FÅA, Bore and Svea, and the ships of Siljavarustamo were divided between these three. All Silja Line's ships were painted in the same colour scheme, with a white hull and superstructure, with the dark blue "Silja Line" text on the side, alongside the now-famous seal's head logo. Each company retained their own funnel colours, so it was easy to distinguish which ship belonged to which company even from a distance: Svea's funnels where white with a large black S on them, FÅA's were black with two white brands around the funnel, and Bore's were yellow with a blue/white cross.
Already before the reorganisation Silja had ordered two new ships from Dubegion-Normandie S.A., Nantes
, France
to begin year-round traffic from Helsinki to Stockholm (up until that point the route was summers only). In 1972 these were delivered to FÅA and Svea as and , respectively. Passenger numbers on the Helsinki route grew fast and already in 1973 it was decided that the three companies would each order a ship of identical design from the same shipyard to replace the current Helsinki–Stockholm ships. The first two of these was delivered in 1975 ( and ). The last sister), was delivered in December of the same year. However, there weren't enough passengers during the winter for all three ships, and as a result the Bore Star was chartered to Finnlines
during the winters of 1975–1976 and 1976–1977. In 1976 Finland SS Co changed its name to Effoa
(the Finnish phonetic spelling of FÅA). During the latter part of the 1970s Effoa's old ferries and made cruises around Baltic Sea, Norwegian fjords and the Atlantic (from Málaga
) under the marketing name Silja Cruises. Also Effoa merged to form Effjohn, a new shipping company.
Despite the difficulties Silja's first real cruiseferries and entered traffic in 1981, which led to a 45% raise in passenger numbers. Late in the same year Johnson Line
purchased Rederi AB Svea, and the former Svea ships received Johnson Line's blue/yellow colours. The good experiences gained from the new Helsinki ships prompted Effoa and Johnson Line to order two ships built on a similar principle for traffic on the Turku–Stockholm route, which were delivered in 1985 and 1986 as and . Although similar in proportions and interior layout, the new ships sported an attractive streamlined superstructure instead of the box-like superstructure of Finlandia and Silvia Regina.
the previous year and from the beginning of 1987 the prestigious but unprofitable "Queen of the Baltic Sea" joined Silja Line's fleet. Later in the same year Effoa and Johnson Line jointly purchased Rederi Ab Sally
, one of the owners of their rival Viking Line. The other Viking Line partners forced the new owners to sell their share in Viking, but Effoa and Johnson Line still gained Vaasanlaivat / Vasabåtarna
, Sally Cruises, Sally Ferries UK and Commodore Cruise Line
. Although the purchase of Sally had no effect in Silja Line's traffic for the time being, it proved to be important later. Finally 1987 saw the order of new ships for Helsinki–Stockholm route (again), which would be the largest ferries ever built (again), eventually named and . Not revealed at the time, the new ships had a 140-meter promenade-street running along the center of the ship, a feature never seen before in a ship (these days promenades are commonly found on Royal Caribbean International
's and Color Line's newer ships).
In late 1989 Wärtsilä Marine, the shipyard building Silja's new cruiseferries, went bankrupt, which led to the ships being delivered later than had been planned. To ensure the delivery of their ferries Effoa and Johnson Line both purchased a part of the new Masa-Yards established to continue shipbuilding in Wärtsilä's former shipyards.
As a result the seal's head logo gravitated into the funnel, replacing the old colours of each individual owner company. In November of the same year the new MS Silja Serenade made its maiden voayge from Helsinki to Stockholm, approximately seven months after the original planned delivery date. MS Silja Symphony was delivered the following year. Despiste being highly popular and sporting a successful design, the new ships had also been very expensive. Coupled with the depression in the early 90's EffJohn was forced to cut costs, which resulted in Wasa Line
and Sally Cruises being merged into Silja Line in 1992. The year also saw Svea and Wellamo being modernised in Silja Karneval and Silja Festival, respectively.
, one of the owners of Viking Line. Due to financial troubles Slite could not pay for their new ship, and the shipyard decided to charter it to Silja instead. Later in the same year Silja joined forced with Euroway
on their Malmö
–Travemünde
–Lübeck
route. The route proved to be unprofitable and was terminated in spring 1994.
was grounded outside Helsinki in spring 1994 and suffered major damage, which prompted Silja to give up traffic on her. September 1994 saw the largest peace-time maritime disaster on the Baltic Sea, the sinking of . Silja Europa, Silja Symphony and Finnjet all assisted in searching for survivors from the disaster. Silja Festival was berthed opposite the Estonia in Tallinn
the day before the sinking http://www.estonia.xprimo.de/estonia%20final%20report/chapter19.htm, but she was in Helsinki when Estonia sank and didn't come to assistance. Sinking of the Estonia led to passenger numbers dropping, which did not help Silja's precarious situation. The company was now the largest on the Baltic Sea, having finally overtaken Viking Line in 1993, but financially it wasn't doing too well. In 1995 Effjohn changed their name into Silja Oy Ab. Three years later the name was changed again, this time to Neptun Maritime.
1999 saw two big changes coming for Silja. Tax-free sales ended on routes between EU countries, which forced the Helsinki–Stockholm ships to start calling at Mariehamn in the Åland Islands. Although the Åland Islands joined the EU along with the rest of Finland in 1994, their autonymous status allowed them to stay outside the EU tax union and hence avoid the end of tax-fee sales. Bigger change than this was Sea Containers purchasing the majority of Neptun Maritime's shares. In 2000 the new owners brought one of their Super SeaCat
s on Helsinki–Tallinn
traffic and Neptun Maritime again changed its name, this time to Silja Oyj Abp. In the same year the route between Vaasa
and Umeå
was terminated as unprofitable.
By 2004 Sea Containers owned Silja Line entirely. The company was doing well financially and all seemed to be going well. However, Sea Containers' other operations were not as profitable and in late 2005 they announced their intent to give up their ferry division completely, this naturally including selling Silja Line. In preparation for the sale the unprofitable and were taken out of service and transferred under Sea Co's ownership. Silja Serenade and Symphony were also rebuilt in early 2006 to make them more attractive to the potential buyer.
. The SuperSeaCats trafficking between Helsinki and Tallinn were not included in the sale as their purchase would have given Tallink a dominant market position on the route, which would have resulted in the competition regulator
s of Finland and Estonia not approving the sale. As a result Sea Containers (that had barely a year ago announced their intention to give up the ferry business completely) continued operating them under the SuperSeaCat
brand. In late 2006 the land organisations of Tallink and Silja Line were reorganised in Finland so that Tallink Finland and Superfast Finland were merged into Oyj Silja Abp, which now took care of all Finnish operations of Tallink/Silja. Shortly afterwards Oyj
Silja Abp was renamed into Tallink Silja Oy. Similarly the land organisations in Sweden became Tallink Silja AB.
After the requisition of Silja, Tallink stated that it intended to keep the Silja Line brand separated from Tallink. However, most Silja Line marketing in Finland and Sweden has since the takeover been made under the combined Tallink Silja name.
In July 2008, the Tallink ship replaced the Silja Festival on the Turku–Mariehamn–Stockholm route. The Galaxy was flagged to Sweden and the text Silja Line was painted on her hull sides. The Tallink logo has remained on her funnel and the Navitrolla-designed livery of the ship, which differs from the livery of other the Silja ships, was unaltered. The Silja Festival was in turn moved to Tallink's Stockholm-Riga
, her funnel repainted in Tallink colors and the text Tallink on her sides. Silja Festival remained as her registered name even after the transfer.
In October 2009, the Managing director of Silja Line (Tallink Silja Oy), Mr. Keijo Mehtonen was retired and Mr. Margus Schults was appointed to the post.
Cruiseferry
A cruiseferry is a ship that combines the features of a cruise ship with a Ro-Pax ferry. Many passengers travel with the ships for the cruise experience, staying only a few hours at the destination port or not leaving the ship at all, while others use the ships as means of...
brand operated by the Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
n ferry company AS Tallink Grupp
Tallink
Tallink is an Estonian shipping company currently operating Baltic Sea cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland, Estonia to Sweden, Latvia to Sweden and Finland to Germany. They also own Silja Line and a part of SeaRail...
, for car and passenger traffic between Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
and Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. The former company Silja Oy – today Tallink Silja Oy
Osakeyhtiö
Osakeyhtiö, literally a "stock company", is the Finnish equivalent of a limited company or Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung . It is abbreviated to Oy and is used either before or after the company's name, sometimes with the addition of the Finland-Swedish equivalent Ab...
– is a subsidiary of Tallink Grupp, handling marketing and sales for Tallink and Silja Line brands in Finland as well as managing Silja's ship employees. Another subsidiary, Tallink Silja AB, handles marketing and sales in Sweden. Strategical corporate management is performed by Tallink Grupp which also own the ships.
As of 2009 four ships service two routes under the Silja Line brand, transporting about three million passengers and 200,000 cars every year. The Silja Line ships has a market share of around 50 percent on the two routes served.
1904–1957
The history of Silja Line can be traced back to 1904 when two FinnishFinland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
shipping companies, Finland Steamship Company (Finska Ångfartygs Aktiebolaget, FÅA for short) and Steamship Company Bore, started collaborating on Finland–Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
traffic. The initial collaboration agreement was terminated in 1909, but re-established in 1910. After World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
in 1918 a new agreement was made that also included the Swedish Rederi AB Svea
Rederi AB Svea
Stockholms Rederi AB Svea was a Swedish shipping company founded in the 1870s...
. Originally the collaboration agreement applied only on service between Turku and Stockholm, but was also applied to the Helsinki–Stockholm in 1928. As a precursor to the policies later adopted by Silja Line, each of the three companies ordered a near-identical ship for Helsinki–Stockholm service to coincide with the 1952 Summer Olympics
1952 Summer Olympics
The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II...
, held in Helsinki. Eventually only Finland SS Co.'s was ready in time for the olympics. At this time the city of Helsinki constructed the Olympia Terminal in Helsinki's South Harbour, that Silja Line's ships still use.
1957–1970
Realising that car-passenger ferriesFerry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
would be the dominating traffic form in the future, the three collaborating companies decided to form a daughter company, Oy Siljavarustamo / Siljarederiet Ab. The new company started out with used ships which weren't particularly well-fitted for the role they were meant for, but that was about to change when in 1961 Silja took delivery of the new , the first purpose-built car-passenger ferry in the northern Baltic Sea
Baltic Sea
The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...
. Skandia
Despite the establishment of Silja, FÅA, Bore and Svea also continued to operate on the same routes with their own ships. This led to a somewhat complex situation where four different companies were marketed as one entiry. In Finland they went by the name Ruotsinlaivat ("Sweden's Ships" or "Ships to Sweden") whereas in Sweden the preferred terms were Det Samseglande (roughly "the ones that sail together"), Finlandsbåten ("Finland's Ships") or Sverigebåten (Sweden Ships). In both countries the names of all four companies were usually displayed alongside the group identity.
1970–1980
In 1967 three of Silja's rival companies had formed a joint marketing and coordination company, Viking LineViking Line
Viking Line is a Finnish shipping company that operates a fleet of ferries and cruiseferries between Finland, the Åland Islands, Sweden and Estonia. Viking Line shares are quoted on the Helsinki Stock Exchange...
, which was to become Silja Line's main rival for the next two decades. FÅA, Bore and Svea soon realised that a similar arrangement would be preferable to their current fragmented image, and in 1970 a big change was carried out within the organisations: Silja Line was established as a joint marketing and coordination company between FÅA, Bore and Svea, and the ships of Siljavarustamo were divided between these three. All Silja Line's ships were painted in the same colour scheme, with a white hull and superstructure, with the dark blue "Silja Line" text on the side, alongside the now-famous seal's head logo. Each company retained their own funnel colours, so it was easy to distinguish which ship belonged to which company even from a distance: Svea's funnels where white with a large black S on them, FÅA's were black with two white brands around the funnel, and Bore's were yellow with a blue/white cross.
Nantes
Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
to begin year-round traffic from Helsinki to Stockholm (up until that point the route was summers only). In 1972 these were delivered to FÅA and Svea as and , respectively. Passenger numbers on the Helsinki route grew fast and already in 1973 it was decided that the three companies would each order a ship of identical design from the same shipyard to replace the current Helsinki–Stockholm ships. The first two of these was delivered in 1975 ( and ). The last sister), was delivered in December of the same year. However, there weren't enough passengers during the winter for all three ships, and as a result the Bore Star was chartered to Finnlines
Finnlines
Finnlines Plc is a Finnish shipping company that operates freight throughout Northern Europe as well as passenger services in the Baltic Sea. In the past, Finnlines has operated ships under the brands Finncarriers, Finnflow Systems, Finnjet Lines, and FG Shipping Oy Ab...
during the winters of 1975–1976 and 1976–1977. In 1976 Finland SS Co changed its name to Effoa
Effoa
Finland Steamship Company was a Finnish shipping company founded in 1883 by Captain Lars Krogius. In Finnish and Swedish The company was usually referred to simply as FÅA. In 1976, the company changed its name to Effoa, a phonetic spelling of the abbreviation FÅA.The company was a founding member...
(the Finnish phonetic spelling of FÅA). During the latter part of the 1970s Effoa's old ferries and made cruises around Baltic Sea, Norwegian fjords and the Atlantic (from Málaga
Málaga
Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...
) under the marketing name Silja Cruises. Also Effoa merged to form Effjohn, a new shipping company.
1980–1986
In the 1979 Svea and Effoa decided again to order new ships for the Helsinki–Stockholm route, which would be the largest ferries of their time. Bore however decided not to participate in building new ships, and in 1980 opted to bow out of passenger traffic altogether (Bore Line still exists as a freight-carrying company today). Their two ships were sold to Effoa and their shares of Silja Line split between the two other companies. In Finland, and later in Sweden, a large maritime strike in spring 1980 stopped ferry traffic completely. This also prompted Effoa to terminate the Silja Cruises service.Despite the difficulties Silja's first real cruiseferries and entered traffic in 1981, which led to a 45% raise in passenger numbers. Late in the same year Johnson Line
Johnson Line
Johnson Line was a Sweden-based shipping line founded in 1904 as a subsidiary of Rederi AB Nordstjernan. In 1982 Johnson Line absorbed Rederi AB Svea, another Rederi AB Nordstjernan -owned company, hence becoming a member of the Finnish-Swedish Silja Line consortium...
purchased Rederi AB Svea, and the former Svea ships received Johnson Line's blue/yellow colours. The good experiences gained from the new Helsinki ships prompted Effoa and Johnson Line to order two ships built on a similar principle for traffic on the Turku–Stockholm route, which were delivered in 1985 and 1986 as and . Although similar in proportions and interior layout, the new ships sported an attractive streamlined superstructure instead of the box-like superstructure of Finlandia and Silvia Regina.
1987–1992
1987 was a very eventful year for Silja. Effoa had purchased the famous GTS FinnjetGTS Finnjet
GTS Finnjet was a cruiseferry, built in 1977 by Wärtsilä Helsinki, Finland for Finnlines traffic between Finland and Germany. At the time of her delivery, Finnjet was the fastest, longest and largest car ferry in the world, and the only one powered by gas turbines...
the previous year and from the beginning of 1987 the prestigious but unprofitable "Queen of the Baltic Sea" joined Silja Line's fleet. Later in the same year Effoa and Johnson Line jointly purchased Rederi Ab Sally
Rederi Ab Sally
Rederi Ab Sally was a Finnish shipping company founded in the 1937 by Algot Johansson. Originally a tanker operator, Sally became a dominant member of the Viking Line shipping consortium in the 1970s. The company met bad times in the 1980s and was bought by its rivals Effoa and Johnson Line in 1987...
, one of the owners of their rival Viking Line. The other Viking Line partners forced the new owners to sell their share in Viking, but Effoa and Johnson Line still gained Vaasanlaivat / Vasabåtarna
Wasa Line
Wasa Line was a Finnish shipping company, established in 1948 and ceased trading when merged into Silja Line in 1993...
, Sally Cruises, Sally Ferries UK and Commodore Cruise Line
Commodore Cruise Line
Commodore Cruise Line was a United States -based cruise line that was in operation from 1968 until 2001. It was founded in 1966 by Sanford Chobol and Edwin Stephan. Following multiple changes in ownership, the company declared bankruptcy in 2001 due to raising fuel costs and increased competition...
. Although the purchase of Sally had no effect in Silja Line's traffic for the time being, it proved to be important later. Finally 1987 saw the order of new ships for Helsinki–Stockholm route (again), which would be the largest ferries ever built (again), eventually named and . Not revealed at the time, the new ships had a 140-meter promenade-street running along the center of the ship, a feature never seen before in a ship (these days promenades are commonly found on Royal Caribbean International
Royal Caribbean International
Royal Caribbean International is a Norwegian and American cruise line brand based in Miami, Florida and owned by Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.. With 42 ships in service under 5 different brands and one more under construction, it controls a 25.6% share of the world cruise market...
's and Color Line's newer ships).
In late 1989 Wärtsilä Marine, the shipyard building Silja's new cruiseferries, went bankrupt, which led to the ships being delivered later than had been planned. To ensure the delivery of their ferries Effoa and Johnson Line both purchased a part of the new Masa-Yards established to continue shipbuilding in Wärtsilä's former shipyards.
As a result the seal's head logo gravitated into the funnel, replacing the old colours of each individual owner company. In November of the same year the new MS Silja Serenade made its maiden voayge from Helsinki to Stockholm, approximately seven months after the original planned delivery date. MS Silja Symphony was delivered the following year. Despiste being highly popular and sporting a successful design, the new ships had also been very expensive. Coupled with the depression in the early 90's EffJohn was forced to cut costs, which resulted in Wasa Line
Wasa Line
Wasa Line was a Finnish shipping company, established in 1948 and ceased trading when merged into Silja Line in 1993...
and Sally Cruises being merged into Silja Line in 1992. The year also saw Svea and Wellamo being modernised in Silja Karneval and Silja Festival, respectively.
1993–2006
The year 1993 began with a bang. In January it was reported that Silja Line had chartered , a ship under construction for Rederi AB SliteRederi AB Slite
Rederi AB Slite was a Swedish shipping company, founded in 1947. The company was one of the three founding companies of Viking Line. Rederi AB Slite went bankrupt in 1993.-Early History:...
, one of the owners of Viking Line. Due to financial troubles Slite could not pay for their new ship, and the shipyard decided to charter it to Silja instead. Later in the same year Silja joined forced with Euroway
Euroway
Euroway was a Swedish ferry company that operated cruise ferries between Sweden and Germany from 1992 till 1994.-History:Founded by the Norwegian businessman, Elling Ellingsen, owner of Sea-Link Shipping AB, with the objective to set up cruiseferry connections between the cities of Malmö in Sweden...
on their Malmö
Malmö
Malmö , in the southernmost province of Scania, is the third most populous city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg.Malmö is the seat of Malmö Municipality and the capital of Skåne County...
–Travemünde
Travemünde
Travemünde is a borough of Lübeck, Germany, located at the mouth of the river Trave in Lübeck Bay. It began life as a fortress built by Henry the Lion, Duke of Saxony, in the 12th century to guard the mouth of the Trave, and the Danes subsequently strengthened it. It became a town in 1317 and in...
–Lübeck
Lübeck
The Hanseatic City of Lübeck is the second-largest city in Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, and one of the major ports of Germany. It was for several centuries the "capital" of the Hanseatic League and, because of its Brick Gothic architectural heritage, is listed by UNESCO as a World...
route. The route proved to be unprofitable and was terminated in spring 1994.
was grounded outside Helsinki in spring 1994 and suffered major damage, which prompted Silja to give up traffic on her. September 1994 saw the largest peace-time maritime disaster on the Baltic Sea, the sinking of . Silja Europa, Silja Symphony and Finnjet all assisted in searching for survivors from the disaster. Silja Festival was berthed opposite the Estonia in Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
the day before the sinking http://www.estonia.xprimo.de/estonia%20final%20report/chapter19.htm, but she was in Helsinki when Estonia sank and didn't come to assistance. Sinking of the Estonia led to passenger numbers dropping, which did not help Silja's precarious situation. The company was now the largest on the Baltic Sea, having finally overtaken Viking Line in 1993, but financially it wasn't doing too well. In 1995 Effjohn changed their name into Silja Oy Ab. Three years later the name was changed again, this time to Neptun Maritime.
1999 saw two big changes coming for Silja. Tax-free sales ended on routes between EU countries, which forced the Helsinki–Stockholm ships to start calling at Mariehamn in the Åland Islands. Although the Åland Islands joined the EU along with the rest of Finland in 1994, their autonymous status allowed them to stay outside the EU tax union and hence avoid the end of tax-fee sales. Bigger change than this was Sea Containers purchasing the majority of Neptun Maritime's shares. In 2000 the new owners brought one of their Super SeaCat
Super SeaCat
The MDV1200 class fast ferry are a series of high-speed craft built by Fincantieri in Genoa for Ocean Bridge Investments and Sea Containers Ltd between 1996 and 1999...
s on Helsinki–Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
traffic and Neptun Maritime again changed its name, this time to Silja Oyj Abp. In the same year the route between Vaasa
Vaasa
Vaasa is a city on the west coast of Finland. It received its charter in 1606, during the reign of Charles IX of Sweden and is named after the Royal House of Vasa...
and Umeå
Umeå
- Transport :The road infrastructure in Umeå is well-developed, with two European highways passing through the city. About 4 km from the city centre is the Umeå City Airport...
was terminated as unprofitable.
By 2004 Sea Containers owned Silja Line entirely. The company was doing well financially and all seemed to be going well. However, Sea Containers' other operations were not as profitable and in late 2005 they announced their intent to give up their ferry division completely, this naturally including selling Silja Line. In preparation for the sale the unprofitable and were taken out of service and transferred under Sea Co's ownership. Silja Serenade and Symphony were also rebuilt in early 2006 to make them more attractive to the potential buyer.
2006–present
May 2006 saw the sale of Silja Line to the Estonian TallinkTallink
Tallink is an Estonian shipping company currently operating Baltic Sea cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland, Estonia to Sweden, Latvia to Sweden and Finland to Germany. They also own Silja Line and a part of SeaRail...
. The SuperSeaCats trafficking between Helsinki and Tallinn were not included in the sale as their purchase would have given Tallink a dominant market position on the route, which would have resulted in the competition regulator
Competition regulator
A competition regulator is a government agency, typically a statutory authority, sometimes called an economic regulator, which regulates and enforces competition laws, and may sometimes also enforce consumer protection laws...
s of Finland and Estonia not approving the sale. As a result Sea Containers (that had barely a year ago announced their intention to give up the ferry business completely) continued operating them under the SuperSeaCat
SuperSeaCat
SuperSeaCat was a shipping company operating fast ferries between Helsinki, Finland and Tallinn, Estonia during the years 2006—2008. It was jointly owned by Sea Containers and the Greece-based Aegean Speed Lines....
brand. In late 2006 the land organisations of Tallink and Silja Line were reorganised in Finland so that Tallink Finland and Superfast Finland were merged into Oyj Silja Abp, which now took care of all Finnish operations of Tallink/Silja. Shortly afterwards Oyj
Osakeyhtiö
Osakeyhtiö, literally a "stock company", is the Finnish equivalent of a limited company or Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung . It is abbreviated to Oy and is used either before or after the company's name, sometimes with the addition of the Finland-Swedish equivalent Ab...
Silja Abp was renamed into Tallink Silja Oy. Similarly the land organisations in Sweden became Tallink Silja AB.
After the requisition of Silja, Tallink stated that it intended to keep the Silja Line brand separated from Tallink. However, most Silja Line marketing in Finland and Sweden has since the takeover been made under the combined Tallink Silja name.
In July 2008, the Tallink ship replaced the Silja Festival on the Turku–Mariehamn–Stockholm route. The Galaxy was flagged to Sweden and the text Silja Line was painted on her hull sides. The Tallink logo has remained on her funnel and the Navitrolla-designed livery of the ship, which differs from the livery of other the Silja ships, was unaltered. The Silja Festival was in turn moved to Tallink's Stockholm-Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
, her funnel repainted in Tallink colors and the text Tallink on her sides. Silja Festival remained as her registered name even after the transfer.
In October 2009, the Managing director of Silja Line (Tallink Silja Oy), Mr. Keijo Mehtonen was retired and Mr. Margus Schults was appointed to the post.
Current fleet
| Ship | Built | Entered service |
Route | Gross tonnage Gross tonnage Gross tonnage is a unitless index related to a ship's overall internal volume. Gross tonnage is different from gross register tonnage... |
Flag | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 1990 | Helsinki Helsinki Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is... –Mariehamn Mariehamn Mariehamn is the capital of Åland, an autonomous territory under Finnish sovereignty. Mariehamn is the seat of the Government and Parliament of Åland, and 40% of the population of Åland live in the city... –Stockholm Stockholm Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area... |
58,376 GT |  Finland |
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| 1991 | 1991 | Helsinki–Mariehamn–Stockholm | 58,377 GT |  Sweden |
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| 1993 | 1993 | Turku Turku Turku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland... –Mariehamn/Långnäs Långnäs Långnäs is a port in Lumparland on the eastern mainland of Åland. Road ferries to Kumlinge and Galtby via Kökar start here. In the early 1960s, Silja Line built a ferry terminal in Långnäs, designed by architect Bengt Lundsten. The terminal was in use 1965-1975 and was then closed and removed in... –Stockholm |
59,912 GT | Finland |
Ordered as MS Europa for Rederi AB Slite Rederi AB Slite Rederi AB Slite was a Swedish shipping company, founded in 1947. The company was one of the three founding companies of Viking Line. Rederi AB Slite went bankrupt in 1993.-Early History:... (Viking Line Viking Line Viking Line is a Finnish shipping company that operates a fleet of ferries and cruiseferries between Finland, the Åland Islands, Sweden and Estonia. Viking Line shares are quoted on the Helsinki Stock Exchange... ). |
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| 2006 | 2008 | Turku–Mariehamn/Långnäs–Stockholm | 48,915 GT | Sweden |
Transferred from Tallink Tallink Tallink is an Estonian shipping company currently operating Baltic Sea cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland, Estonia to Sweden, Latvia to Sweden and Finland to Germany. They also own Silja Line and a part of SeaRail... . |
Former ships
| Ship | In service | Owner/operator | Tonnage1 | Status as of 2010 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1957–1967 | Siljavarustamo | Scrapped in Helsinki, Finland, 1970 | ||||
| 1957–1964 | Siljavarustamo | Scrapped in Baia Baia Baia is a commune in the Suceava County, Romania with a population of 6,793 . It is composed of two villages, Baia and Bogata. Located on the Moldova River, it was one of the earliest urban settlements in Moldavia, originally inhabited by Germans... , Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... , 1983 |
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| 1961–1973 1973–1974 |
Siljavarustamo Finland Steamship Company |
Sunk in the Atlantic, 1984 | ||||
| 1962–1973 1973–1974 |
Siljavarustamo Rederi AB Svea Rederi AB Svea Stockholms Rederi AB Svea was a Swedish shipping company founded in the 1870s... |
Scrapped at Eleusis, Greece Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... , 1988 |
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| 1966–1970 1970–1984 1993–2001 |
Siljavarustamo Svea Line (Finland) EffJohn; Silja Line |
10,515 GT |
Since 2010 MS Kaptain Boris for Red Line Shipping | |||
| 1967–1970 1970–1975 |
Siljavarustamo Steamship Company Bore |
Sunk outside Morocco Morocco Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara... , 2008 |
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| 1970–1976 | Steamship Company Bore | Since 1987 MS Kristina Regina for Kristina Cruises Kristina Cruises Kristina Cruises is a Finnish family-owned shipping company with over fifty years of experience in cruise business. The company was founded in 1985 and registered in Kotka. In addition to the five destinations in the early days of business they currently sail to more than 70 ports... |
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| 1970–1974, 1978–1980 | Finland Steamship Company | ; | Since 1997 MS Palm Beach Princess for Palm Beach Casino Line | |||
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1970–1973 1974, 1976 |
Rederi AB Svea Steamship Company Bore |
Since 2002 MS Birger Jarl for Ånedin Linjen | |||
| 1970–1975 | Finland Steamship Company | Scrapped in India, 2008 | ||||
| 1972–1977 | Finland Steamship Company | Scrapped in Alang, India India India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world... , 2004 |
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1972–1978 1979 |
Rederi AB Svea Rederi AB Svea Stockholms Rederi AB Svea was a Swedish shipping company founded in the 1870s... Effoa Effoa Finland Steamship Company was a Finnish shipping company founded in 1883 by Captain Lars Krogius. In Finnish and Swedish The company was usually referred to simply as FÅA. In 1976, the company changed its name to Effoa, a phonetic spelling of the abbreviation FÅA.The company was a founding member... |
Scrapped in Alang, India, 2005 | |||
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1973–1980 1980–1983 |
Steamship Company Bore Effoa |
Since 2007 MS Rigel for Ventouris Ferries Ventouris Ferries Ventouris Ferries is a Greek company that operates ferry services from Italy to Greece and Albania.-Routes:Ventouris Ferries operates two routes across the Adriatic Sea.*Bari - Durres*Bari - Corfu - Igoumenitsa-Fleet:... |
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| 1975–1984 | Rederi AB Svea; Johnson Line Johnson Line Johnson Line was a Sweden-based shipping line founded in 1904 as a subsidiary of Rederi AB Nordstjernan. In 1982 Johnson Line absorbed Rederi AB Svea, another Rederi AB Nordstjernan -owned company, hence becoming a member of the Finnish-Swedish Silja Line consortium... |
Scrapped in Aliağa Aliaga Aliaga can refer to:* Aliaga, Aragon, Spain* Aliağa, Turkey* the Filipino municipality of Aliaga, Nueva Ecija on Luzon* a family name, as in the case of the Peruvian writer Felipe Pardo y Aliaga... , Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... , 1995 |
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1975–1981 1984–1985 |
Effoa Johnson Line |
Since 2007 MS Jupiter for Royal Group Ltd. | |||
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1976–1980 1980–1986 1992–2000 |
Bore Line Effoa EffJohn |
Since 2010 MS Arberia for Ilion Lines | |||
| 1981–1990 | Effoa | Since 2010 MS Princess Maria for St. Peter Line | ||||
| 1981–1991 | Rederi Ab Svea; Johnson Line | Since 1994 MS Stena Saga for Stena Line Stena Line Stena Line is one of the world's largest ferry operators, with ferry services serving Scotland, Sweden, Northern Ireland, Denmark, Norway, England, Wales, Ireland, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland. Stena Line is a major unit of Stena AB, itself a part of the Stena Sphere, a grouping of Stena AB,... |
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1985–1992 1992–1994 |
Johnson Line EffJohn |
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Since 2008 MS Mega Smeralda for Corsica Ferries Corsica Ferries Corsica Ferries and Sardinia Ferries are marketing names used by Corsica Ferries, a France-based ferry company that operates traffic to and from the islands of Corsica and Sardinia... |
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1986–1992 1992–2008 |
Effoa; EffJohn Silja Line |
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Since 2008 sailing for Tallink | ||
| 1987–2006 | Effoa; EffJohn | Scrapped at Alang, India, 2009 | ||||
| 1990 | Effoa | Sunk in 1994 as MS Estonia | ||||
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1992–1994 2002–2006 |
EffJohn Silja Line |
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Since 2007 MS Cristal for Louis Cruise Lines Louis Cruise Lines Louis Cruises is a Cyprus-based cruise line that operates cruises from Cyprus, France, Italy, India and Greece . The company also charters several ships to Thomson Cruises... |
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1993–1994 1994–1997 |
Euroway Euroway Euroway was a Swedish ferry company that operated cruise ferries between Sweden and Germany from 1992 till 1994.-History:Founded by the Norwegian businessman, Elling Ellingsen, owner of Sea-Link Shipping AB, with the objective to set up cruiseferry connections between the cities of Malmö in Sweden... EffJohn |
Since 1997 MS Gabriella for Viking Line Viking Line Viking Line is a Finnish shipping company that operates a fleet of ferries and cruiseferries between Finland, the Åland Islands, Sweden and Estonia. Viking Line shares are quoted on the Helsinki Stock Exchange... |
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| (marketed as Wasa Jubilee) |
1998 | Silja Line | Since 2000 MS Color Viking for Color Line | |||
| HSC SuperSeaCat Four | 2000–2006, summers only | SeaContainers | Since 2009 HSC Speedrunner IV for Aegean Speed Lines Aegean Speed Lines Aegean Speed Lines is a Greek ferry company operating fast ferries between Pireaus and the Cyclades.-History:Aegean Speed Lines were formed in 2005 as a joint venture between Sea Containers and the Eugenides Group. Aegean Speed Lines were the first ferry company in Greece to use a European Union... . |
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| HSC SeaCat Denmark | 2000 | SeaContainers | Since 2006 HSC Pescara Jet with SNAV SNAV SNAV is an Italian company that operates ferry services from Italy to Sardinia, Croatia and Sicily.- Routes :SNAV operates a large network of routes across the Mediterranean and Adriatic.... |
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| HSC SuperSeaCat Three | 2003–2006, summers only | SeaContainers | Since 2009 HSC Speedrunner III for Aegean Speed Lines Aegean Speed Lines Aegean Speed Lines is a Greek ferry company operating fast ferries between Pireaus and the Cyclades.-History:Aegean Speed Lines were formed in 2005 as a joint venture between Sea Containers and the Eugenides Group. Aegean Speed Lines were the first ferry company in Greece to use a European Union... . |
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| HSC SuperSeaCat One | summer 2005 | SeaContainers | Since 2006 HSC Almudaina Dos HSC Almudaina Dos HSC Almudaina Dos is one of four high speed monohull ferries built by Fincantieri for Sea Containers. She is currently owned and operated by Acciona Trasmediterránea.... for Acciona Trasmediterranea Acciona Trasmediterránea Acciona Trasmediterránea is part of the Acciona group. It operates passengers and cargo ferries between mainland Spain and the Canary Islands, the Balearic Islands, and northern Africa.-History:... |
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| 1May be specified in gross tonnage Gross tonnage Gross tonnage is a unitless index related to a ship's overall internal volume. Gross tonnage is different from gross register tonnage... (GT) or gross register tons (GRT). |
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See also
- Finnish Maritime ClusterFinnish Maritime ClusterThe Finnish Maritime Cluster is a cluster of companies in maritime industries in Finland. In 2001 the total turnover was estimated at 11.4 billion euros with 47,000 people employed in shipbuilding and related industries.-History:...
- List of Finnish companies
- SeaRailSeaRailSeaRail operates a train ferry for railway freight wagons between Turku, Finland, and Stockholm, Sweden. Because the track gauge of the Finnish railways is wider than the standard gauge of much of the rest of Europe , a special fleet of freight wagons with interchangeable bogies is used...
– part-owned by Tallink Silja Oy