A Méridionale boat in the port of Marseille -

P.Magnien / 20 Minutes

La Corsica Linea obtained on Thursday the maritime public service delegation (DSP) from March 1 for three of the five links between Corsica and the mainland and will share a fourth with La Méridionale which also obtains the fifth link.

A favorable vote from the Corsica Assembly allows Corsica Linea to operate alone under this transitional DSP the Bastia-Marseille, Porto-Vecchio-Marseille and Ile-Rousse-Marseille lines for the period of March 1, 2021 as of December 31, 2022.

The red boat company will share the Ajaccio-Marseille line with La Méridionale, belonging to the Stef logistics group.

For the remaining line, Propriano-Marseille, La Méridionale and its blue boats, was selected.

Corsica Ferries is studying legal remedies

Corsica Ferries, candidate for the five lines, did not meet the requirements of this DSP, said Vannina Borromei, president of the transport office before the Corsican Assembly.

Faced with the eviction of the company with yellow ships, leader for the transport of passengers between Corsica and the continent, its CEO, Pierre Mattei indicated to study new legal remedies: "What will be the legal ground, we will see, but we will definitely act, ”he said.

The implementation of this transitional DSP results from the postponement by the Corsican Assembly, last autumn, of the mixed-economy company with a single operation (Semop) due in particular to the "context of health crisis" which "modifies the need for public service ”.

The only private partner that came forward was made up of Corsica Linea and La Méridionale, and their offer was deemed inadequate last September.

Europe survey

The postponement of this public-private partnership was also justified by the opening in February 2020 by the European Commission of an investigation to determine whether the DSP contracts relating to maritime links between Marseille and the ports of Bastia, Ajaccio and Ile -Rousse, awarded to Corsica Linea in June 2019, comply with European Union state aid rules.

Supposed to see the light of day on January 1, 2021, this partnership between the Collectivité de Corse (50.1%) and the private shareholder (49.9%), was intended to create a regional shipping company providing service to the five ports of Corsica from Marseille for seven years.

The principle of the creation of this regional company had been recorded by a vote of the Corsican Assembly of September 6, 2016, in order to replace the public service delegations which currently supervise the service of the island.

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