Irish Sea Shipping Lines

FERRY OPERATORS ON THE IRISH SEA PLAYING CRUCIAL ROLE IN DIFFICULT CIRCUMSTANCES

With our Ports battling through the impacts of the global Covid-19 pandemic and the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union, trading activity is slowly but surely returning to more normal levels, although there is still a way to go.

Shipping Lines operating on the Irish Sea corridor, of course, have been playing a pivotal role in that recovery and continue to adjust to meet the ever demanding requirements of transport operators in what remains a difficult and highly competitive sector. More so than ever before, customers are seeking not only the best possible rates, but also convenient crossing schedules and a service that they can depend on in these most trying of times. With an ever increasing shortage of drivers, and the need for social distancing, unaccompanied freight continues to gain momentum, with shipping lines rising to the demand. Over the next few pages, we look at how ferry operators are playing a key role in keeping the sector moving and the supply chain in tact despite the challenges.

P&O FERRIES SUPPORTING CUSTOMERS ON THE IRISH SEA

P&O Ferries is amongst the leading ferry providers on the Irish Sea. The rapid Larne to Cairnryan route includes two of the company’s fastest 21,000-ton freight ships, the European Causeway and its younger sister, the European Highlander.

Taking just two hours, the crossing is by far the quickest and most efficient way to ship freight to and from Scotland, with an integrated end-to-end product offering providing fast, reliable and flexible links to growing markets and international supply chains. Eighty-eight weekly crossings deliver the most frequent service on the Irish Sea, with existing capacity for seamless expansion to 92 sailings, should this be required to facilitate customer demand. Following this year’s successful dry dock, an array of improvements have been made to enhance the comfort and the experience of passengers onboard its vessels. These include a fully refurbished driver restaurant with additional capacity for driver dining, free Wi-Fi, a new, highly popular carvery station and refreshed menu. In recognition of their tireless hard work, P&O is also offering a 20 percent discount to freight drivers in onboard shops. Simultaneously, P&O Ferries’ Dublin to Liverpool route connects two cities - both cultural and economic powerhouses - enabling the transportation of goods in just eight hours. Operated by a fleet of four robust ships, including its ROPAX ships, Norbank and Norbay, the route is part of a critical supply chain that handles vital supplies for use in the healthcare sector, energy industry and food supply chain. P&O Ferries continues with its single occupancy offer whilst also allowing drivers who arrive in the same vehicles, along with those pre-approved by their company, to share a single cabin. With the support of its parent company, DP World, it is committed to improving and expanding trading infrastructure between the UK and Ireland, enabling families and freight to move easily and affordably between Britain, Ireland, and continental Europe. Its operations on the Irish Sea are central to delivering such a future. The aforementioned changes highlight P&O’s ability to adapt quickly and comprehensively in response to customer’s priorities. “P&O are capable of taking on any challenge, irrespective its size or complexity. As we emerge from Covid-19, supply chains will continue to become even more global, crossing borders and traversing jurisdictions. “Amidst regulatory change and political uncertainties, we are uniquely positioned to use our deep sector knowledge in support of customers operating on the Irish Sea, helping them to navigate complex supply chain challenges, drive efficiency and eliminate waste.”

FLEXIBLE STENA LINE RISES TO CHALLENGES

To date, 2021 has thrown up a record number of challenges for the ferry industry including the unique combination of the COVID-19 pandemic and the continuing unfurling of Brexit related issues, some expected and some not so. At Stena Line the key phrase this year has been flexibility, in particular, flexibility of fleet deployment.

With the enforced reduction of nonessential travel during the pandemic, a spotlight was put on the freight and logistics sector as never before, and the industry responded well. Keeping essential supply lines open into Northern Ireland was a responsibility Stena Line and other operators took very seriously indeed. Establishing and maintaining safe and compliant working environments for customers and staff onboard and in port became a priority for Stena Line. Despite the ever-changing rules and prevailing public health advice in different regions of the UK, Ireland and France, Stena Line maintained a laser focus on ensuring all parts of its business operated to the highest safety standards. It is fair to say that the implementation of Brexit from 1st January this year caused a fundamental shift in traffic flows rarely seen previously as the logistics industry sought to mitigate against the worst impacts of Brexit in terms of delays and bureaucracy impacting on already tight delivery schedules. Virtually overnight the priority to go direct from mainland Europe to Ireland, circumventing UK Brexit protocols and regulations, became a business reality and Stena Line reacted swiftly to the emerging increase in demand by adding extra tonnage to its Rosslare – Cherbourg service. Since the start of the year market distortions cause by Brexit have reduced and traditional traffic flows now between the UK and Ireland have reverted to near norm, the exceptions being the Holyhead to Dublin and Rosslare – Fishguard routes, where volumes still remain below pre-Brexit levels. The challenges for Stena Line have been formidable this year but as Freight Commercial Manager (Irish Sea) Anna Breen says, it’s all about listening to what customers want and having the ability to change fast. “Looking back over the last 6-9 months it has been remarkable to see the amount of change our business has undergone and the pace at which we were able to plan and implement those changes. As one of Europe’s leading ferry companies, Stena Line was perhaps uniquely placed to leverage its substantial route network and fleet of vessels to ensure that it was operating at the maximum level of efficiency in the areas of greatest demand requested by our customers. “Moving vessels and crews to the point of demand can be a complex operation but having a highly experienced team of experts onboard and ashore enable us to quickly plan and deliver the tonnage to where it was required most. For me the key to our achievements in the first 6 months of this year was flexibility. “Keeping pace with and sometimes foreseeing where the changes were required has been extremely well received by our customers and as their feedback has shown, at a critical time for the logistics industry, Stena Line played a key role in keeping the sector moving despite the enormous challenges, an achievement we are very proud of.”

New Concerns

As we move into the second half of the year new challenges have emerged for the industry including driver shortages, estimated currently at over 100, 000 of a shortfall across the UK and Ireland and the ever-increasing rise in demand for unaccompanied traffic. A recent report has shown that approximately 71% of freight traffic into Ireland is currently unaccompanied and that figure is expected to rise. As a port owner and operator, this trend in the market presents Stena Line with a number of challenges, not least managing the potential for port congestion, which can have a detrimental impact across the sector in terms of delays and reduced efficiency levels. Stena Line is actively engaging with the haulage industry to help manage and improve traffic flows through its ports in a bid to maintain punctuality and reliability, cornerstones metrics of any successful logistics operation. When the prevailing public health advice permits, Stena Line plans to revert back to its normal shared cabin policy for drivers, but in the meantime, the company will continue to operate its pandemic policy of providing single cabin occupancy only, unless drivers travel together in the same vehicle, then they can share. To help ease capacity issues, Stena Line is also planning to move two RoPax vessels to its Rosslare-Cherbourg route, with the Stena Viga adding additional cabin capacity, and the Stena Foreteller will also provide additional unaccompanied trailer capacity on the Belfast-Liverpool service.

Sustainability

For the remainder of this year and for years to come, sustainability will be a central focus for Stena Line embodied in its ship livery… Connecting Europe for a Sustainable Future. Stena Line is committed to becoming a leader in sustainable shipping. One of the key strategic focuses of the company is to lead the transformation towards emission free shipping in an industry characterised by equality and diversity. This will be an evolutionary process in which Stena Line continues to invest time and resources to help achieve its vision for the future, the work continues apace.