Stena Acquires Color Line, Joining Two of Europe’s Largest Ferry Companies
Stena, which is already one of the largest ferry operators in Europe, is moving to expand its presence in Scandinavia with the acquisition of Norway’s Color Line. It is highlighting the complementary nature of the operations for European ferries and freight transport while emphasizing the growth opportunities.
“This is a true milestone in Stena Line’s history, further strengthening our ability to be a reliable link between places, people, and communities,” said Niclas Martensson, CEO of Stena Line. Stena is one of Sweden’s largest family-owned companies, with Stena Line operating 40 ships on 19 routes in Northern Europe and the Mediterranean.
Color Line is Norway’s largest cruise and ferry operator with five ships sailing between Norway, Denmark, Germany, and Sweden. Among its fleet are the sister ships Color Magic and Color Fantasy, which, at 75,000 gross tons and 224 meters (735 feet) in length, are considered to be the largest luxury ferries in the world. The ships can each accommodate 2,600 passengers and have 1,270 meters for trailers with a capacity for 550 cars. It also has two high-speed vessels and the Color Hybrid.
Stena has agreed to purchase 100 percent of the shares of the privately held company for a non-disclosed price. It says that Color generated revenues of more than $718 million in 2025 and carried nearly 3.6 million passengers with 150,000 freight units.
Following the completion of the acquisition, Stena intends for Color Line to continue as a separate, independent business and brand, with local management in Norway and Norwegian-registered ships. At the same time, Stena will use its industrial expertise, reach and experience to strengthen and further develop Color Line – including in decarbonization, technology and digitalization, customer service and logistics.
“Color Line is one of the most recognized and valued brands in our industry, and Stena wants to preserve these strengths while giving us a stronger foundation for the company’s further development and renewal as part of Stena,” said Color Line’s CEO Trond Kleivdal.
Color Line is owned by Norwegian industrialist Olav Nils Sunde and his family. Sunde told the Norwegian news outlet Dagens Næringsliv that it was the right time to sell the company and prepare it for the future. He said that while the company is very successful, the future demands restructuring and digitalization, which Stena is prepared to assist the company with. He called Stena a “long-term owner with industrial scale and expertise.”
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Color Line is the product of several mergers tracing its roots back to two Norwegian shipping companies, Jahre Line and Norway Line, which merged in 1990 to form Color Line. The company then acquired the ferry operations of Fred. Olsen and then, in 1997, took over the operations of Larvik Line, which made Sunde the largest shareholder.
The investment company O.N. Sunde highlights that it entered the cruise and ferry segment in 1994-1995 by acquiring a majority shareholding in Larvik Line and 100 percent of Scandi Line, which was also later merged into Color Line. Sunde became the sole owner of Color Line in 1999 when it was delisted from the Oslo Stock Exchange.
