1. Executive Summary
There is, at present time, a unique opportunity to develop a robust maritime connectivity system for the islands of Cabo Verde. This exceptional opportunity comes from an explosive investment in tourism industry; the necessity to integrate the island of Brava with the rest of the archipelago and the government's strategy to develop a secure and reliable inter-island transportation.
Cabo Verde Fast Ferry, S.A. in partnership with the government can position itself as a trend setting company dedicated to providing speed, comfort and dependability to satisfy inter-island cargo, tourism and business transportation needs.
The Republic of Cabo Verde is currently experiencing significant changes in all sectors and as a result, in 2007, the country was promoted to Medium Developing Country. Despite the positive developments and renewed optimism, the reality is not the same for all the islands that make up the archipelago, and the situation is particularly worse for southern islands of Maio, Fogo and Brava. Experts believe that Brava, the most isolated of all, will regain its economic place in Cabo Verde once the transportation problem is solved. This is an opportunity which needs to be seized for effective development of Brava through a multi-year transportation strategy.
The objective of Cabo Verde Fast Ferry, S.A. is to launch an inter-island maritime connectivity platform with ferries built specifically for the waters of Cape Verde and capable of carrying passengers and commercial cargo.
According to most recent data from the Port Authority (ENAPOR), approximately 400,000 passengers circulated the country in 2007. The LloydsMIU vessel call data for Praia, Santiago appeared to be the most complete with 303 ferry calls in 2006 and showing the number of calls slightly more than 100 passengers per call. In the same year, ENAPOR shows a total of 283,000 tons of cargo hauled around the archipelago.
2. Objectives
For maximum efficiency, Cabo Verde Fast Ferry has chosen to develop the market in two phases - implementation and expansion. In implementation phase, the company expects to transport 90,000 tons of cargo and 235,000 passengers during first year of operation featuring routes connecting the islands of Brava, Fogo, Praia, Maio, S.Antao, S. Nicolau, S. Vicente, Sal and Boavista.
3. Mission
The mission of Cabo Verde Fast Ferry is to provide innovative, short and long term inter-island transportation solutions designed to exceed customer expectations, increase shareholders value and to ensure continued success of the company and its family of employees.
4. Keys to Success
• High demand for dependable, fast and comfortable inter-island connectivity. Purpose built and fuel efficient fast ferries able to transport cargo and passengers with low overhead expenses.
• Growing investment trend in tourism and business sectors.
• Marketing power - convergence between business and community passion to integrate the islands into a single economy.
• Cabo-verdian company; fully owned and operated by successfull Cape Verdean entreprenuers. First to forge global community participation and strong partnership with the government.
5. Fleet
The initial deployment of Cabo Verde Fast Ferry will consist of (2) new fast ferries designed specifically for the waters of Cape Verde and built at 45 meters in length equipped with all the necessary security and amenities for passenger safety and comfort. The vessels will carry 50 tons of commercial cargo and 158 passengers... [read more]
