The final pair of a six vessel Cobelfret freight ro-ro series built in Germany by Flensburger Schiffbau for North Sea operations, have been fitted with hoistable mezzanine decks for cars. Located on the main trailer decks the additional decks have been installed in Swinoujscie, Poland, with work on the 33,960gt Opaline, delivered last October, completed in time for a first arrival at Purfleet in the middle of the following month.
Originally designed to offer just under 3,000 lane metres of vehicle space, the 25,235gt Amandine, last of the 195.4m series, was completed in late January and went direct from Flensburg to Swinoujscie. With berths for 12 drivers, the six single-screw vessels are powered by MAN engines delivering 10,800kW, running at 500rpm, giving a service speed of 18.5 knots and an average speed of 14.9 knots. Cobelfret operate short sea ro-ro services from Purfleet, Ipswich and Immingham.
