Samsø ferry operator faces 650,000-kroner monthly diesel shortfall

Samsø’s municipally owned ferry company could face a monthly budget gap of up to 650,000 kroner when fixed-price diesel contracts expire, with higher ticket prices and fewer departures among the options being considered, DR reports.

The contracts have helped secure cheaper fuel for the ferries for years. The company could otherwise enter its next budget year with a deficit of 7.2 million kroner, said Samsø Mayor Per Urban Olsen.

Olsen said the municipality is considering four possible measures: state support, slower sailing, higher fares and cancelled departures. Slower sailing could also mean longer crossing times.

“I don’t like the last two. It’s a choice between two bad options. It’s a really difficult situation,” he said, referring to fare increases and cutting departures.

More than 300,000 tourists visit Samsø each year. Ole Kjær Pedersen, who drives a minibus on the island, said higher prices would be bad for the tourism trade.

The mayor said a previous increase in tickets for the Jutland ferry to Samsø, introduced after new VAT rules left the operator needing to find almost two million kroner, led to an immediate drop in passenger numbers. He urged the government to provide support for ferry services, calling them the island’s lifeline.

Higher fares could also affect businesses shipping goods from the island. Søren Peter Kjeldahl, director of one of Samsø’s largest employers, said the company sends potatoes, onions and red cabbage to mainland supermarkets every day and could lose its place as a supplier if transport costs rise too much.

Some 4,500 truck trailers cross the southern Kattegat each year, according to the article. Kjeldahl said customers could turn to other suppliers if the ferry price became too high.

The Ministry of Urban, Rural and Transport is working on a compensation scheme for municipal ferry operators to ease the worst effects, DR reported.