Tallink ( Estonian pronunciation: [ˈtɑlʲˑiŋk] ) is an Estonian shipping company operating Baltic Sea cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland , Estonia to Sweden and Finland to Sweden. It is the largest passenger and cargo shipping company in the Baltic Sea region . It owns Silja Line and a part of SeaRail . Tallink Hotels runs four hotels in Tallinn . It is also the co-owner of a taxi company Tallink Takso.
53-700: It is a publicly traded company , that is listed in Tallinn Stock Exchange . A major shareholder is an investment company AS Infortar, that also has ownership in several Tallink subsidiaries and a natural gas company Eesti Gaas . The history of the company known today as Tallink can be traced back to 1965, when the Soviet Union -based Estonian Shipping Company (ESCO) introduced passenger ferry services between Helsinki and Tallinn on MS Vanemuine . Regular around-the-year passenger ferry services began in 1968, on MS Tallinn , which served
106-445: A stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange ( listed company ), which facilitates the trade of shares, or not ( unlisted public company ). In some jurisdictions, public companies over a certain size must be listed on an exchange. In most cases, public companies are private enterprises in the private sector, and "public" emphasizes their reporting and trading on
159-440: A company they perceive as possibly lacking liquidity. For example, if all shareholders were to simultaneously try to sell their shares in the open market, this would immediately create downward pressure on the price for which the share is traded unless there were an equal number of buyers willing to purchase the security at the price the sellers demand. So, sellers would have to either reduce their price or choose not to sell. Thus,
212-401: A long period of time after maturity into a profitable company. However, from 1997 to 2012, the number of corporations publicly traded on US stock exchanges dropped 45%. According to one observer ( Gerald F. Davis ), "public corporations have become less concentrated, less integrated, less interconnected at the top, shorter lived, less remunerative for average investors, and less prevalent since
265-594: A new route from Helsinki to St. Petersburg via Tallinn. This route proved unprofitable and was terminated in January 2005. Later in 2005, Tallink ordered a sister ship of the to-be-delivered MS Galaxy and a fast ropax ferry from Aker Finnyards as well as another ropax ferry from the Fincantieri yard in Italy. On December 9, 2005, Tallink was listed at Tallinn Stock Exchange . In 2006, Tallink purchased
318-553: A separate entity, its former shareholders receiving compensation in the form of either cash, shares in the purchasing company or a combination of both. When the compensation is primarily shares then the deal is often considered a merger . Subsidiaries and joint ventures can also be created de novo . That often happens in the financial sector. Subsidiaries and joint ventures of publicly traded companies are not generally considered to be privately held companies (even though they themselves are not publicly traded) and are generally subject to
371-520: A six-times-a-day Tallinn–Helsinki–Tallinn service. In 2018, during the course of over 10,000 voyages the company carried 9.756 million passengers, 1.25 million vehicles and 384,958 cargo units. In 2019, the company carried 9.763 million passengers and 385,000 cargo units. In 2019, Tallink reached a franchise agreement with a global fast-food company, Burger King to open restaurants in Estonia, Latvia , and Lithuania , and according to
424-514: A third Galaxy -class cruiseferry from Aker Yards. Two new ships followed in 2008, with the fast cruiseferry MS Superstar delivered from Fincantieri and the second Galaxy -class ship, MS Baltic Princess , delivered from Aker Yards. Both ships were placed in service between Helsinki and Tallinn With the delivery of the former, the last AutoExpress fast craft, AutoExpress 2 , was withdrawn from Helsinki–Tallinn service. Baltic Princess , meanwhile, replaced her sister ship Galaxy , which
477-466: Is a société anonyme (SA). In Germany , it is an Aktiengesellschaft (AG). While the general idea of a public company may be similar, differences are meaningful and are at the core of international law disputes with regard to industry and trade. Usually, the securities of a publicly traded company are owned by many investors while the shares of a privately held company are owned by relatively few shareholders. A company with many shareholders
530-716: Is not necessarily a publicly traded company. Conversely, a publicly traded company typically (but not necessarily) has many shareholders. In the United States, companies with over 500 shareholders in some instances are required to report under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ; companies that report under the 1934 Act are generally deemed public companies. A public company possess some advantages over privately held businesses. Many stock exchanges require that publicly traded companies have their accounts regularly audited by outside auditors and then publish
583-408: Is privately held can buy out the shareholders of a public company, taking the company off the public markets. That is typically done through a leveraged buyout and occurs when the buyers believe the securities have been undervalued by investors. In some cases, public companies that are in severe financial distress may also approach a private company or companies to take over ownership and management of
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#1732801725590636-520: Is traded on a major stock exchange, it is not uncommon when shares are traded over-the-counter (OTC). Since individual buyers and sellers need to incorporate news about the company into their purchasing decisions, a security with an imbalance of buyers or sellers may not feel the full effect of recent news. Linda Line Linda Line was the brand name of Lindaliini AS , an Estonian ferry company operating between Tallinn , Estonia and Helsinki , Finland . Its high-speed passenger ferry Karolin
689-404: Is when a company has little or no trading activity and the market price is simply the price at which the most recent trade took place, which could be days or weeks ago. This occurs when there are no buyers willing to purchase the securities at the price being offered by the sellers and there are no sellers willing to sell at the price the buyers are willing to pay. While this is rare when the company
742-596: The Georg Ots was chartered to Tallink. In the early 1990s, passenger numbers on Helsinki–Tallinn traffic were steadily increasing, and during winters between 1992 and 1995, Tallink chartered MS Saint Patrick II from Irish Ferries to increase capacity on the route. Tallink became a fully Estonian-owned company in 1993, when Palkkiyhtymä sold its shares of both the Tallink company and MS Tallink to ESCO. At this time, other companies were establishing themselves on
795-592: The Normandy ' s charter ended in December 1997, Tallink purchased MS Lion King from Stena Line, which entered traffic in February 1998 as MS Fantaasia . In July of the same year, Tallink purchased the freighter MS Kapella which opened a line from Paldiski to Kapellskär , Tallink's first route to Sweden. In October, the original MS Tallink , which no longer conformed modern safety regulations,
848-581: The Tallink carried 166,000 passengers. Later in the same year the freighter MS Transestonia joined the Tallink on the Helsinki–Tallinn route and Tallink was established as the name of the company as well as the main ship. At the same time ESCO still operated the Georg Ots in the same route, essentially competing with its own daughter company. This conflict was resolved in September 1991, when
901-563: The Vana Tallinn on Helsinki–Tallinn traffic under the name TH Ferries . In 1997, a second large ferry was brought to Tallink's traffic when the company chartered MS Normandy from Stena Line . To replace the lost hydrofoils, Hansatee purchased a new express catamaran in May 1997, which was named MS Tallink Express I . At this time it was clear that two large ferries were needed for traffic between Helsinki and Tallinn, and when
954-477: The 2,500-passenger cruiseferry MS Romantika from the Finnish Aker Finnyards . This was the first ship in a new building programme that between 2001 and 2010, cost €1.2 billion. In June 2001, Tallink purchased HSC Tallink AutoExpress 2 , while next month, EstLine was declared bankrupt . In 2002, AS Hansatee changed its name to AS Tallink Grupp, and in May of the same year,
1007-591: The Baltic Sea operations of Superfast Ferries from Attica Group , opened a route between Riga and Stockholm (with MS Fantaasia , which was within a month replaced by MS Regina Baltica ), took delivery of the new MS Galaxy which replaced Romantika on the Tallinn–Helsinki route, transferred Romantika to the Tallinn–Stockholm route, and withdrew AutoExpress from service. A few months later,
1060-706: The Germany–Finland service. The ships spent the winter of 2009–2010 laid up in Kopli , before re-commencing service between Helsinki and Rostock in April 2010. In March 2011, it was confirmed that the MS ; Superfast VIII and MS Superfast VII have been chartered to Stena Line for a period of three years, with the option to extend the charter for another year. Stena Line will use these ships for Scotland – Northern Ireland service. The vessels will be delivered after
1113-587: The Swedish Nordström & Thulin ), renamed her MS Vana Tallinn and placed her in Helsinki–Tallinn traffic for Tallink. Inreko also brought with them two fast hydrofoils , HS Liisa and HS Laura which began serving under the Tallink Express brand. In 1994, Tallink also attempted traffic from Estonia to Germany for the first time, with two chartered ferries MS Balanga Queen and MS Ambassador II that were placed on
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#17328017255901166-455: The Tallink brand and their route changed to Tallinn–Helsinki– Rostock . In April of the same year, Aker Yards delivered the fast cruiseferry MS Star that had been ordered in 2005. With the delivery of the Star , Meloodia was chartered to Balearic Islands , Spain for ten months and later sold, while AutoExpress 3 and AutoExpress 4 were also withdrawn. During April 2007, Tallink also ordered
1219-566: The accident, emphasizing that none of the passengers confirmed actually seeing the man falling overboard or in the water. Ships that are still in use are marked in green. Tallink has six terminals, of which two are in Estonia, two in Sweden and two in Finland. Estonia Finland Sweden Public company A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on
1272-470: The accounts to their shareholders. Besides the cost, that may make useful information available to competitors. Various other annual and quarterly reports are also required by law. In the United States, the Sarbanes–Oxley Act imposes additional requirements. The requirement for audited books is not imposed by the exchange known as OTC Pink. The shares may be maliciously held by outside shareholders and
1325-516: The agreement, Tallink will have exclusive rights for running Burger King eateries in the Baltic states for 20 years. The company plans to open the first restaurant in each Baltic state in the first half of 2020. The enlargement of Burger King will employ around 800 people in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. In late 2018 Tallink ordered its second liquefied natural gas -fueled ship the MS MyStar , it
1378-487: The company purchased the rival Finnish passenger line Silja Line from Sea Containers . The purchase of Superfast and Silja cost €780 million. In October 2006, the company expressed an interest in making an offer to operate ferries on the state-subsidized routes between the Swedish island of Gotland and the Swedish mainland between 2009 and 2015. From the beginning of 2007, the former Superfast ships were moved under
1431-533: The company took delivery of the MS Romantika , which was placed on Helsinki –Tallinn traffic. In November of the same year, the classic Georg Ots was sold to the government of Russia. In 2004, three news ships joined Tallink's fleet, HSC Tallink AutoExpress 3 and HSC Tallink AutoExpress 4 alongside the Romantika ' s sister MS Victoria I which was placed on Tallinn– Stockholm route, replacing MS Fantaasia which in turn started
1484-486: The company was struggling to repay its debts of €1.1 billion. The fiscal year ending in August resulted in an operating loss, and the company had to re-negotiate with its 15 funding banks debt repayment schedules for the years 2009–2011. The banks took a more controlling role in the company: it could no longer pay dividends, make investments, or sign new contracts without its creditors' approval. Tallink also had to pick up
1537-432: The company. One way of doing so would be to make a rights issue designed to enable the new investor to acquire a supermajority . With a supermajority, the company could then be relisted, or privatized. Alternatively, a publicly traded company may be purchased by one or more other publicly traded companies, with the target company becoming either a subsidiary or joint venture of the purchaser(s), or ceasing to exist as
1590-522: The delivery of a new vessel for 2018. Operations ended in November 2017, and Merilin and Karolin were sold off. The announced delivery of the new vessel was initially announced to be delayed. The company eventually filed for bankruptcy in May 2018. In 2008, Linda Line planned to purchase a trimaran-type vessel for the Tallinn–Helsinki route, intended to replace hydrofoil Jaanika. The trimaran would have been safer and slightly larger than Merilin. The launch
1643-463: The end of the high season in August 2011. Until then they are operated on their current route by Tallink. The prospective charter will improve the result of these vessels so that they will be generating a profit. In February 2015, the company signed a building contract for the construction of its first liquefied natural gas -fueled ship, the MS Megastar which began from January 2017, providing
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1696-444: The firm's stock. For many years, newly-created companies were privately held but held initial public offering to become publicly traded company or to be acquired by another company if they became larger and more profitable or had promising prospects. More infrequently, some companies such as the investment banking firm Goldman Sachs and the logistics services provider United Parcel Service (UPS) chose to remain privately held for
1749-422: The first large ferry into Helsinki–Tallinn traffic when they chartered MS Mare Balticum from EstLine and renamed her MS Meloodia . Following various disputes between ESCO and Inreko (most notably about the charter price of Vana Tallinn ), Inreko sold their shares of AS Hansatee to ESCO in December 1996. At the same time Inreko sold the Tallink Express hydrofoils to Linda Line , Estonia, and begun operating
1802-517: The journey between Tallinn and Helsinki in an hour and a half, much faster than the conventional ferries serving the same route. Starting in 2007, the hydrofoils were replaced with catamarans , which were less expensive to maintain and had better seaworthiness. Still catamarans are more dependent on the weather than traditional vessels, and Linda Line had a policy of cancelling departures when wind speeds exceeded 15 metres per second and/or wave heights were over 3 metres. In 2017, Linda Lines announced
1855-552: The lucrative Helsinki–Tallinn traffic, including the Estonian New Line, owned by the Tallinn-based Inreko . ESCO and Inreko saw no sense in competing with each other and in January 1994, Tallink and Inreko Laeva AS were merged into AS Eminre . Tallink remained the marketing name for the company's fleet. Later in the same year Inreko purchased MS Nord Estonia from EstLine (a daughter company of ESCO and
1908-425: The number of trades in a given period of time, commonly referred to as the "volume" is important when determining how well a company's market capitalization reflects true fair market value of the company as a whole. The higher the volume, the more the fair market value of the company is likely to be reflected by its market capitalization. Another example of the impact of volume on the accuracy of market capitalization
1961-793: The original founders or owners may lose benefits and control. The principal–agent problem , or the agency problem is a key weakness of public companies. The separation of a company's ownership and control is especially prevalent in such countries as the United Kingdom and the United States. In the United States, the Securities and Exchange Commission requires firms whose stock is traded publicly to report their major shareholders each year. The reports identify all institutional shareholders (primarily firms that own stock in other companies), all company officials who own shares in their firm, and all individuals or institutions owning more than 5% of
2014-433: The pace in debt repayments if conditions were to improve, and had to look for options to sell or rent some of its ships. Most of its debts were incurred for purchasing Silja Line for €470 million and Superfast Ferries for €310 million. In November 2009, due to the competitive pressure of larger rivals and higher fuel prices Tallink temporarily withdrew MS Superfast VII and MS Superfast VIII from
2067-497: The price per share. For example, a company with two million shares outstanding and a price per share of US$ 40 has a market capitalization of US$ 80 million. However, a company's market capitalization should not be confused with the fair market value of the company as a whole since the price per share are influenced by other factors such as the volume of shares traded. Low trading volume can cause artificially low prices for securities, due to investors being apprehensive of investing in
2120-569: The public markets. Public companies are formed within the legal systems of particular states and so have associations and formal designations, which are distinct and separate in the polity in which they reside. In the United States , for example, a public company is usually a type of corporation though a corporation need not be a public company. In the United Kingdom , it is usually a public limited company (plc). In France , it
2173-620: The rest of the cabin, and the company offered a variety of hotel and leisure packages in Helsinki. On April 16, 2008, the Tallinn City Government decided to award the contract for the Tallinn-Aegna shipping line to Linda Line. The decision was also helped by a decision made at the end of March to have the route depart from Linnahall terminal instead of Pirita. The line was operated by the small passenger ship Juku. At
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2226-523: The route Helsinki–Tallinn– Travemünde . In September 1994, AS Eminre's operations were divided into two companies, one that took care of the traffic to Germany (which was soon closed down) and AS Hansatee which took the Helsinki–Tallinn traffic and the Tallink name. ESCO was the dominant partner in Hansatee, controlling 45% of the shares, whereas Inreko owned only 12.75% (the remaining 42.25% belonging to Eesti Ühispank , Estonia). In 1995, Hansatee brought
2279-528: The route until it was replaced by the new MS Georg Ots in 1980. In May 1989, ESCO formed a new subsidiary, joint venture ( Estonian : ühisettevõte ) Tallink, together with the Finnish Palkkiyhtymä Oy . In December of the same year, ESCO and Palkkiyhtymä purchased MS Scandinavian Sky from SeaEscape , and the ship began servicing the Helsinki–Tallinn route on 8 January 1990 as MS Tallink . During her first year in service
2332-446: The same reporting requirements as publicly traded companies. Finally, shares in subsidiaries and joint ventures can be (re)-offered to the public at any time. Firms that are sold in this manner are called spin-outs . Most industrialized jurisdictions have enacted laws and regulations that detail the steps that prospective owners (public or private) must undertake if they wish to take over a publicly traded corporation. That often entails
2385-428: The turn of the 21st century". Davis argues that technological changes such as the decline in price and increasing power, quality and flexibility of computer numerical control machines and newer digitally enabled tools such as 3D printing will lead to smaller and more local organization of production. In corporate privatization, more often called " going private ," a group of private investors or another company that
2438-409: The would-be buyer(s) making a formal offer for each share of the company to shareholders. The shares of a publicly traded company are often traded on a stock exchange . The value or "size" of a company is called its market capitalization , a term which is often shortened to "market cap". This is calculated as the number of shares outstanding (as opposed to authorized but not necessarily issued) times
2491-424: Was chartered for 20 months to Irish Ferries and renamed to MS Oscar Wilde . In April 2006, Tallink's ferry MS Regina Baltica , en route from Tallinn to Stockholm, ignored when multiple passengers reported that a passenger had fallen overboard. The crew refused to stop the ship to search for the passenger and the 21-year-old Estonian male perished in the incident. Tallink later accepted no responsibility for
2544-534: Was delivered STX Europe (the former Aker Yards). The new ship was placed on the Tallinn–Mariehamn–Stockholm service alongside Victoria I . Romantika , that had been Victoria I ' s running mate since 2006, was in turn transferred to the Riga–Stockholm route, where she replaced Regina Baltica that was in turn chartered out to Acciona Trasmediterránea . In December 2009, it was reported that
2597-483: Was initially planned for April 2009, but this was soon postponed to June 26, and the purchase was ultimately not completed for unknown reasons. Linda Line started the 2009 season with two catamarans, Merilin and the newly acquired Karolin. In Tallinn, the Linda Line high-speed ferries departed from Linnahall terminal and in Helsinki from Makasiini terminal. Both ships had a Linda class and a VIP class separated from
2650-490: Was sold. Two months later Hansatee purchased their first fast ferry capable of carrying cars, HSC Tallink AutoExpress . By the year 2000, ESCO had become the sole owner of EstLine, and in December 2000, EstLine's two ferries MS Regina Baltica and MS Baltic Kristina were chartered to Hansatee, and the line between Tallinn and Stockholm began to be marketed as a part of Tallink. A few months earlier, in August 2000, Hansatee had ordered their first newbuild
2703-647: Was supposed to be completed by the end of 2019, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In December 2020, Tallink made its last trip from Riga, the capital of Latvia. It was sailed by the ship MS Victoria I from Riga to Stockholm . In April 2022, relations with Tallink ships will cease to operate in Latvia. On December 10, 2022, the new MS Mystar arrived in Tallinn and started Tallinn - Helsinki route on December 13, eventually replacing MS Star which
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#17328017255902756-425: Was the fastest vessel sailing between the two cities, linking Tallinn's Linnahall terminal and Helsinki's Makasiini terminal in 100 minutes. The company was founded in 1997. It ceased operations in November 2017 and filed for bankruptcy in May 2018. Lindaliini AS was founded in 1997 as the successor of shipping company Inreko Laeva AS. It started operations with a fleet of three hydrofoils , which were able to make
2809-671: Was transferred to the fleet of Silja Line. With the arrival of Galaxy MS Silja Festival was left without employment in the Silja fleet, and she was in turn transferred to Tallink's fleet, joining Regina Baltica on the Riga–Stockholm service. In November 2008, MS Superfast IX , one of three ships purchased from Superfast Ferries in 2006, was chartered to the Canadian Marine Atlantic ferry operator for five years. In April 2009, Tallink took delivery of its last newbuilding (as of 2010), when MS Baltic Queen
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