Two new ferries are being built to join an expanding freight service between Heysham and Belfast, it has been announced.
Stena Line, the Irish Sea’s leading ferry company, said the multi-million pound investment will significantly increase freight capacity on the route.
Each of the two new 147-meter vessels has been designed to maximise freight volumes and will provide 2,800 lane meters of capacity which is an 80 per cent increase on current ship capacities.
The new vessels will be equipped to carry 12 passengers and 26 crew.
Phil Hall, Mersey Port Director at Heysham Port operators Peel Ports Group, said: “The Heysham-Belfast freight service is extremely important to the Port of Heysham.
"The construction of Stena Line’s two new ferries will go a long way towards meeting increased customer demand, while the additional capacity will allow for enhanced services for our port users.
"It’s a fantastic project to be supporting, and we look forward to delivering a bigger and better freight service for our customers from 2025 onwards.”
Paul Grant, Stena Line Trade Director, said it was a "very significant day for Heysham-Belfast freight traffic".
"By adding an extra 80 per cent capacity to the route, Stena Line has responded to growing demands from customers," said Mr Grant.
"We have operated a very popular service on Heysham-Belfast for several years now but with restricted capacity it has been challenging to meet increased market growth.
"With the extra capacity, we will now be able to significantly enhance our service on this route and complement our Birkenhead, Cairnryan and Holyhead services.”
The ‘NewMax’ vessels will be able to operate on methanol fuel.
Stena Line said it is currently working closely with the supply chain of methanol and has secured future volumes of e-methanol to fulfil its strategic ambition of shifting to renewable fuels and cut 30 per cent of its CO2 emissions by 2030.
Future proofing of the new vessels for electrification will also be another priority during construction providing in-built technologies that can take advantage of both battery propulsion and shore power, where this is available.
Each vessel will be fitted with a bespoke marine technology configuration making it more resilient to the prevailing weather conditions in the challenging tidal systems of Heysham. Three bow thrusters will provide optimum manoeuvrability and reliability and a specially designed engine/propeller configuration will further enhance berthing capability in extreme weather.
Stena Line is the largest ferry operator on the Irish Sea, with the biggest fleet offering the widest choice of routes including, combined passenger and freight services from Belfast to Cairnryan and Liverpool, Dublin to Holyhead, and Rosslare to Fishguard routes, as well as this dedicated freight only route from Belfast to Heysham - a total of up to 238 weekly sailing options between Britain and Ireland.
Peel Ports Group is one the UK’s largest port operators, owning and operating six of the UK’s most important ports (Heysham, Liverpool, Manchester Ship Canal, Medway (Sheerness / Chatham), Clydeport and Great Yarmouth).
Peel Ports handles approximately 70 million tonnes of cargo every year. A total of 14 per cent of UK major ports traffic flows through ports operated by the group, headquartered in Liverpool, which employs around 2,000 staff.
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