Tallink Grupp, the Estonian cruise ferry company, said it has reported a profit for the third quarter of this year – the first positive result since the start of the pandemic in the spring of 2020

Net profit for the third quarter amounted to €5.5 million, which compares to a loss of €23.9 million in the same period last year. Operating profit (EBITDA) increased to €35.5 million from €5.7 million.

The result improved as the company reopened some of its services following the easing of travel restrictions and on chartering out of two ships, CEO Paavo Nogene said in a statement.

However, he warned that the business was now in a low season and that the Covid-19 pandemic situation in Estonia and Latvia had taken a turn for the worse, bunker costs were high and there were concerns about the labour market as well. These factors dampened the outlook for the rest of this year.

Looking further ahead, Nogene said that passenger volumes should recover significantly by the spring and summer of next year.