SHIPPING NEWS

Dan Sten Ollson, owner of Stena Line meets with staff of the AVIC Weihai shipyard in China, at the signing ceremony for the company’s new ferry Stena Estrid.

The ship departs China for its long journey.

Stena Line Takes Delivery of Irish Sea-Bound Ferry

Stena Line has officially taken ownership of its newest ferry Stena Estrid following a handover ceremony at the AVIC Weihai Shipyard in China.

The first of five next generation Stena Line RoPax vessels that are currently being constructed at the shipyard, Stena Estrid recently embarked on a six-week journey to its new home on the Irish Sea, where it will begin service on the Dublin to Holyhead route this month(January). A further two of the new ferries are also destined for the Irish Sea with Stena Edda expected to commence operations from Belfast to Liverpool in the spring, and a third vessel Stena Embla to be introduced on the same route in early 2021. Stena Line owner Dan Sten Olsson attended a service officiated by the Reverend Stephen Miller of the Mission to Seafarers, who undertook the long held maritime tradition of blessing the ship, in order to bring it good luck at sea. Stena Line CEO Niclas Mårtensson said that the delivery of Stena Estrid marks the start of a very important few months for Stena Line’s Irish Sea operations: “Taking ownership of Stena Estrid is a major milestone for Stena Line and is the result of a very significant investment in our Irish Sea operations that reflects our commitment to the region and will ultimately see three of the world’s most modern ferries operating between Ireland and Britain. “A first-class customer experience is a priority for us, so we are determined to deliver the best possible freight and travel service to our customers. Stena Estrid will provide a more environmentally sustainable way to travel with more efficient loading and unloading operations, increased freight capacity and the best Scandinavian quality, style and design in our facilities, including the Hygge Lounge and the latest upgrade of our premium area Stena Plus.”

Most Advanced

Part of a multi-million-pound investment in the region, the new Stena Line ships will be amongst the most advanced vessels in operation and larger than today’s standard RoPax vessels. At 215 metres in length, Stena Estrid will provide freight capacity of 3,100 lane meters, meaning a 50 per cent increase in freight tonnage, and the space to carry 120 cars and 1,000 passengers and crew. The introduction in 2020/21 of sister ships Stena Edda and Stena Embla will increase freight capacity on the Belfast to Liverpool route by 20 per cent. The name Estrid is connected to Stena Line’s Scandinavian heritage. It is an Old Norse eastern-Nordic version of the name Astrid. Estrid is commonly found on old runestones and means ‘divinely beautiful’.

Logistics Industry Concerns Over Sulphur Surcharge For Irish Sea Shipping Routes

FTA Northern Ireland is concerned that businesses shipping goods via the Irish Sea are set to be faced with additional surcharges from shipping lines, which will make the cost of doing business with GB and Europe more expensive for Northern Irish businesses.

The additional transport

costs – estimated by FTA to be around £21 million per annum - are attributed to the cost of adaptation measures to comply with the new sulphur oxides targets entering into force worldwide from 1 January 2020. Mandated by the United Nations regulatory body for shipping, the IMO, these rules will require the sulphur content of marine fuel to be no higher than 0.5% (mass percentage). “Surcharges are a bad response to this change,” says Seamus Leheny, FTA’s Policy Manager for Northern Ireland. “While the industry has been expecting increased costs as a result of the new rules around low sulphur fuel, a new surcharge mechanism seems unnecessary. This is the new normal, so shipping companies should be including this in normal commercial pricing arrangements.” FTA is opposed in general to the use of surcharges in the shipping industry. The Association sees these as an old-fashioned hang-over from a previous era. Managing input cost changes is a normal part of business and can be dealt with through fuel cost adjustment factors, or just anticipating the likely cost to come and including it in contract prices. “These changes have been known about for a long time and could have been factored into all business plans for 2020. They are not temporary, nor are they different to what is being done anywhere else in the world. FTA wants the shipping companies to move away from this approach as quickly as possible as we see no need for this additional charging mechanism.”

IRISH FERRIES FREIGHT