- The port of Nice resumed its links with Corsica on July 1.
- But its activity runs at low speed, without cruises and the usual rhythm of ferries.
- The recovery is gradual and the losses are significant, according to the director of operations of the port.
At the port of Nice, if "reservations have skyrocketed" this weekend, there is still not enough to turn the tide, blows its director of operations. With the Covid-19 crisis and the drastic reduction in activity, Michel Lallement expects a loss of one third of annual turnover.
Since July 1 and after more than three months of stoppage, because of health measures linked to the new coronavirus pandemic, the company Corsica Ferries has resumed its links with Corsica. And it was time: these ferries representing one of the main activities of the Lympia basin, located east of Nice.
"If we make 200,000 passengers we will be happy"
But, even if "reservations are very important for the season", they do not allow "for the moment a return to normal", supports Pierre Mattéi, the CEO of Corsica Ferries company. Especially since the crossing program is lightened, with one a day at the moment, against five departures in normal times, according to the Nice Chamber of Commerce. "If we make 200,000 passengers, we will be happy this year", underlines Michel Lallement. In 2019, 415,000 were on board for the island of beauty.
Corsica Ferries has chosen to maintain minimum activity to ensure continuity of public service during confinement. The port of Nice has just reopened. The company again ensures maritime links with Corsica from July 1. pic.twitter.com/5wK7JVQFDR
- Pierre Mattei (@petrumatteu) July 1, 2020"We will lose about a third of the turnover of the port of Nice over the year," predicts the director of operations for the port of Nice. It's worrying. ” "The recovery will also depend on how we will resume the cruise from September internationally," he adds, while this market stopped dead with containment. And the restart is complicated since the Americans are still deprived of holidays in Europe.
Save the renters
If the port has a "stature that will allow it to resist", adds Michel Lallement, however, he remains concerned about the fate of professionals. “The boat rental companies have not been active since confinement. So we suspended their rent. Above all, they must not disappear, ”he worries.
To support the recovery, the city and the CCI organize cultural events. Thursday, "Piaf le spectacle" will be played outdoors on the customs platform. The restaurateurs and the traders association Port Avenir and Directo productions are associated with it. The idea is to buy prepaid tickets online, including a show and a dinner at a partner restaurant around the port.
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