Florida Man Hopes to Run Ship Portland/Yarmouth

Private group seeks to form new ferry companyBy Robert M. Cook

Mainebiz Staff Reporter
Yesterday

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A man with long ties to the former Scotia Prince cruise ship ferry hopes to lure enough investors to purchase a similar vessel that would sail under the flag of a new company to restore ferry service between the city and Yarmouth, Nova Scotia.

Erik Hultkrantz of Tampa, Fla., owns The Shuttle LLC, a company that works with the shipping industry. Soon after Bay Ferries Ltd. of Prince Edward Island, Canada, announced in December it was discontinuing its high-speed CAT ferry service, Hultkrantz picked up the phone and e-mailed as many people as he could worldwide to generate interest in a new service.

The CAT discontinued its ferry service on Dec. 16 after the service failed to receive a $6 million-$7 million subsidy from Nova Scotia's government to keep operating in 2010.

Hultkrantz has reached out to his contacts in the city, including Bob Cott, a partner at CD&M Communications in Portland, which is doing the marketing and advertising for the new venture. Cott says Hultkrantz formerly led Floating Fleet for 20 years, which was in charge of all onboard operations when the Scotia Prince left the dock in Portland and Yarmouth. CD&M handled marketing for the Scotia Prince for 14 years.

Cott says there are also a lot of people who worked for the former Scotia Prince Cruises who have expressed interest in working onboard any new cruise ship ferry vessel that Hultkrantz and his group of prospective investors might purchase. These people include former Scotia Prince crew members, support staff and business management, according to Cott.

The Scotia Prince was a well-managed cruise ship ferry for more than 30 years before it ceased operations in Portland in 2004, pumping $53 million a year into the greater Portland economy, Mark Hudson, a former vice president of finance and communications for Scotia Prince cruises, told Mainebiz at the time.

Cott says the investment group is presenting itself as Nova Scotia Cruises. If Hultkrantz's new business venture bears fruit, the potential cruise ship ferry would operate at the city's Ocean Gateway International Marine Terminal where The CAT ferry operated for the past two seasons.

Ideally, Hultkrantz would like to purchase a vessel similar to the Scotia Prince, but larger. He recalled the Scotia Prince had 315 cabins and could hold 200 cars, trucks and buses.

He says he would like a vessel with up to 700 cabins that could accommodate more people and vehicles. He says all the cabins would include modern amenities and he would seek a cruise ship ferry that would have a casino with table games and slot machines, two dining rooms and live entertainment.

Hultkrantz says he knows there are other groups seeking to do the same thing as his group because they all recognize the potential business opportunity that exists. He would not say how much investment capital he would need to raise to make his venture a reality. He says he might have a better idea if it will come together in the next two or three months.

Hultkrantz says the Portland to Nova Scotia ferry route could be profitable if the company operating the vessel and the service demonstrated strong business management practices. Despite his plans, he emphasized that the group is "in such the beginning stages of it." He added, "If we get this together, we are looking for a 2011 startup."