Brittany Ferries charters new LNG cruise-ferry

Brittany Ferries has chartered a third new cruise-ferry to serve its long-haul routes. To be powered by LNG, the ship will be built at the AVIC Weihai Shipyard in China and is due to join Brittany Ferries’ network in 2023.

As yet unnamed, the new ship will be chartered from Stena RoRo and will be built to the Swedish shipowner’s E-Flexer design. Its arrival will bring to three the number of E-Flexer class ships in Brittany Ferries’ fleet following the arrival of Galicia in 2021 and Salamanca in 2022. Brittany Ferries is also constructing another new ship, Honfleur, at the FSG shipyard in Flensburg Germany, for delivery expected in late 2019.  Two of the vessels will sail to France and two to northern Spain. 

The charter agreement, which includes an option to purchase, represents the next step in a fleet renewal and investment programme worth around €550mn.

LNG presents major environmental advantages over conventional maritime fuels, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by around 20% and cutting sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and particulate emissions to almost zero, reports Brittany Ferries.

Commenting on the news, Brittany Ferries’ CEO Christophe Mathieu, said: ‘These are environmentally-friendly, capacious and comfortable ships which perfectly suit to our long-haul services. The charter… clearly demonstrates our commitment to LNG as a fuel and, our ambition to operate one of the most modern, green and comfortable ferry fleets in the world.’

Plans to build LNG fuelled ferries sailing from Portsmouth were originally cancelled a few years back, as reported in the July 2015 issue of Petroleum Review, due to a lack of LNG bunkering facilities. This situation has not changed and there are still no plans for LNG bunkering at Portsmouth. As a result, the ferries will re-fuel on the other side of the English Channel.
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Photo: Brittany Ferries