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Jehan Ashmore

Jehan Ashmore

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Jehan Ashmore is a marine correspondent, researcher and photographer, specialising in Irish ports, shipping and the ferry sector serving the UK and directly to mainland Europe. Jehan also occasionally writes a column, 'Maritime' Dalkey for the (Dalkey Community Council Newsletter) in addition to contributing to UK marine periodicals. 

Shipbuilder, Harland & Wolff has secured a passenger fast-ferry for service between Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly. It's aiming to break existing operator, Isles of Scilly Steamship Group's (ISSG) monopoly on services with a faster, cheaper and more frequent service in May 2024. In the meantime the 56m Austal built craft is to call to H&W’s Belfast yard to be repainted in 'Scilly Ferries' colours and renamed Scilly Xpress before entering service as planned in early Spring.

New Fast-Ferry for Isles of Scilly As Harland & Wolff 'Secured' Craft Set to Enter Service in Spring

22nd December 2023 Ferry
Belfast based Harland & Wolff is to introduce a new fast ferry to the Isles of Scilly which they say has been "secured" and due to start running a service in the spring in competition with an existing company. The…
Locals in Arklow call on Wicklow County Council to retain parts of historic former Arklow schooner, De Wadden, before demolition. The three-masted cargo ship traded for decades on the Irish Sea, is seen above at Liverpool Maritime Museum, where it has been on display for decades.

Race Against Time As Locals Attempt to Save Historic Arklow Sail-Cargo Ship before Deconstruction Deadline

22nd December 2023 Historic Boats
Maritime enthusiasts from Arklow have implored Wicklow County Council to help them in their race against the clock to save parts of an historic auxiliary sailing cargo-ship, the last of its type to serve on the Irish Sea. The local…
Harland & Wolff, the Belfast based shipyard group, chooses not to increase its bid to buy Isles of Scilly Steamship Company, which operates Scillonian III to the archipelago off Cornwall on a seasonal basis along with a year-round freight run between Penzance-St. Mary’s, Scilly. The Scillonian III was built in 1977 in neighbouring Devon, at Appledore Shipbuilders Ltd. In recent years AFLOAT adds, the yard was acquired by the Harland & Wolff Group.

Harland & Wolff Group Opts Not to Pursue Bid for Isles of Scilly Ferry

22nd December 2023 Shipyards
Shipyard firm Harland & Wolff based in Belfast has decided not to make a formal bid to buy the passenger ferry and freight-company, which operates to the Isles of Scilly off Cornwall. In an initial approach by H&W to acquire…
The new flagship Manxman has living quarters especially incorporated for seafarers to use during rest periods

Ferry Officers of Isle of Man Steam Packet to Refuse to Do Overtime in Dispute

21st December 2023 Ferry
Officers employed by the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company, will according to a union, refuse to work overtime from 27 December in a dispute over changes to contracts. In a ballot of union members from Nautilus International, who make…
Stena Line signs major deal with Peel Ports Group, to operate from Heysham Port, England for the next 77-years until 2100. Pictured above is Carl-Johan Hellner, Chief Operating Officer Ports & Terminals, Stena Line and David Huck, Chief Operating Officer at Peel Ports Group.

Major Deal Signed between Stena Line and Peel Ports to Operate at Heysham Port until the Year 2100

21st December 2023 Stena Line
Ferry company, Stena Line has signed a significant deal with a major UK port operator, the Peel Ports Group to operate from Heysham Port, England for the next 77-years until 2100. A twice daily freight service is run on the…
As Afloat reported earlier today, Stena Line’s Trade Director (Irish Sea) Paul Grant confirmed plans to launch a new freight service on the Dublin-Birkenhead (Liverpool) starting mid-February 2024. Stena is currently assessing ship deployment options for the Ireland-England service. The last time this central corridor route operated, Afloat reported on the then branded DFDS Seaways with their freight-only Dublin-Heysham route. Both routes ran from July, 2010 but closed in early 2011, marking a very short-spell of service, however now trading as DFDS with an Irish presence: Rosslare-Dunkirk launched in 2021 and longer-term DFDS Logistics lo-lo Ireland-continental Europe routes.

Stena Line to Launch New Freight Route of Dublin-Birkenhead (Liverpool) Complementing Existing Belfast Link

15th December 2023 Stena Line
Ferry operator, Stena Line has confirmed plans to launch a new freight-only Dublin-Birkenhead (Liverpool) route which is start service in mid-February 2024. The new central Irish Sea service will initially operate with one ro-ro ship departing Dublin early in the…
A new design for a zero emission English Channel container vessel featuring wind blades has released by Belgium's Zulu Associates. The ground-breaking 200 TEU capacity autonomous short sea container vessel is to be operated by Anglo Belgian Shipping Company.

New Design for Zero-Emission English Channel Operating Autonomous Container Vessel to Feature Wind Blades

15th December 2023 Ports & Shipping
A Belgian maritime innovator, Zulu Associates is revealing the latest concept design of its groundbreaking 200 TEU autonomous short sea container vessel, the Zulu Mass. The design for the Zulu Mass is to feature an auxiliary wind assistance system as…
Sligo Port has often been seen in the past as having a precarious future, however there were many positives that emerged about the north-west port, during Sligo County Council’s recent monthly meeting. Above is a short-sea cargo ship Scot Trader, which AFLOAT adds, has been replaced by a successor of the same name, which also primarily trades in forest/timber products.

Port of Sligo Where Initiatives Are Underway to Create More Business

15th December 2023 Irish Ports
In the north-west at Sligo Port, is where the facility could possibly see an increase in shipping activities to take place in the coming years. The potential for increased traffic at the port, Sligo Champion reports is on foot of…
Scotland, where Western Isles and Clyde ferry services are operated by Caledonian MacBrayne (CalMac) owned by the Scottish Government. Readers’ of The Herald, in an online poll (since closed) were posed the Question: Should CalMac be given the contract to run Scotland's ferry services?... to find out the result, see below. Above Loch Seaforth, the largest ferry in CalMac, which this year celebrated its 50th anniversary, operating routes among them Ullapool-Stornaway (Isle of Lewis and Harris) Outer Hebrides, is served by the Glasgow registered flagship, built 2014 by FSG Flensburger, Germany, with sea trials as AFLOAT reported on the Irish Sea, as far south off Wicklow Head.

Should Scotland's Government Owned Ferry Operator CalMac be Given a Permanent Contract? - See Online Poll

15th December 2023 Ferry
Scottish Government owned ferry operator, Caledonian MacBrayne (CalMac) is considering providing a permanent public contract to run its own ageing fleet to west coast islands.  An uncontested direct award, The Herald writes, to the state-owned operator CalMac by Ministers’ is…
In the latest ERSI quarterly report, there was a decline in Irish exports, notably in the pharmaceutical sector, which will result in the nation’s GDP shrinking by 2.7% this year. On the domestic front, the ERSI expect demand is to rise by just 0.6% this year, with GDP to shrink by 2.7%. Above container ship MSC Nikoleta which AFLOAT highlights of its arrival to the Port of Cork with a maiden call on 2nd March, as seen the next day at the Cork Container Terminal (CTT), Ringaskiddy.

Quarterly Report from ESRI As It Cuts Domestic Growth Forecast Again as Irish Households & Businesses Tighten Belts

14th December 2023 Ports & Shipping
In its latest quarterly outlook report, the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) which provides evidence-based research to inform public policy debate and decision-making, has cut its domestic economic growth forecasts for a third time this year. As The Irish…
To celebrate the creation of the Port of Milford Haven, 65 years ago, The First Minister, Mark Drakeford last week attended a gala event to mark the milestone (in a separate development, Afloat adds, the First Minister announced yesterday, that he is quitting in his role after five years). Also attending the event, was the Welsh Secretary, the Chair of the Welsh Select Committee along with 200 guests. Milford Haven is the largest port in Wales and is the UK’s single largest cluster of energy-related businesses, processing around 20% of the UK’s energy needs, supporting the employment of 5,000 highly skilled workers in Wales, with many hundreds more throughout the wider supply chain.

Port of Milford Haven, the Largest Port in Wales Celebrates 65 Years With Ministers Attending Gala Event

14th December 2023 Ports & Shipping
To mark the 65th anniversary of the creation of the Port of Milford Haven, The First Minister of Wales (Mark Drakeford), the Welsh Secretary and the Chair of the Welsh Select Committee and more than 200 guests came together at…
With shipyards in Belfast, Arnish in Scotland and Appledore, England, the Harland & Wolff Group this week reached the milestone of 1,000 employees that includes delivery centres and commercial sites.

Shipbuilder Harland & Wolff Group Reaches Milestone of 1,000th Employee

14th December 2023 Shipyards
With its largest shipyard based in Belfast, the Harland & Wolff Group has announced that it has reached 1,000 employees across the company's facilities on both sides of the Irish Sea.  The international shipbuilding and marine engineering business continues to actively…
Strike-action has affected some Dover-Calais ferry sailings today, operators DFDS and P&O advise passengers to check in advance of travel, AFLOAT adds, at time of writing, Irish Ferries sailings remain in service.

Dover-Calais Operators’ DFDS and P&O Ferries Advise Passengers During Calais Port Workers’ Strike

14th December 2023 Ferry
Strait of Dover ferry sailings to Calais are being affected by strike action in France today, (14 Dec.) an operator has warned. The Danish company, DFDS says because of the effect on the Dover-Calais route, it is offering sailings on…
The new Mersey ferry, according to Metro Mayor, Steve Rotheram has confirmed that the new vessel would solely be built on Merseyside. This is to take place at Cammell Laird, Birkenhead and will be the first new ferry in 60 years, and as the Liverpool Echo reports is to cost in the region of £26m with a delivery due in 2025.

New Mersey Ferry to Be Built Locally at Cammell Laird, Birkenhead Will be the First in 60 Years

13th December 2023 Shipyards
The shipyard which built the UK's polar research ship, RRS Sir David Attenborough, Cammell Laird is to construct the first new Mersey ferry in 60 years, in a move which marks a major milestone for the shipbuilder. Located at Birkenhead…
Crew dispute: Nautilus says industrial action is 'increasingly likely' at the Isle of Man Steam Packet, over working conditions since introducing newbuild flagship, Manxman, which includes live-aboard facilities.

Trade Union Says Industrial Action Is 'Increasingly Likely' for Ferry Crew Workers of Isle of Man Steam Packet

13th December 2023 Ferry
Trade union, Nautilus International has said that industrial action is "increasingly likely" for the ferry crew working for the Isle of Man Steam Packet, as they have criticised the operator’s latest move over 'fire and rehire' of seafarers. According to…
Shipyard visit, as the UK Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn MP is seen at Harland & Wolff, Belfast, on the day same that the Labour Party announced a commitment to build all government vessels across shipyards in the UK, should they be elected into an administration.

UK Shadow Secretary Visits Harland & Wolff As Labour Party Announce Government Ships to Be Built Across UK If Elected

13th December 2023 Shipyards
A visit to Harland & Wolff Group’s Belfast shipyard took place recently by the UK Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn MP. The visit according to Harland & Wolff came on the same day that the Shadow…
Belfast based marine high-tech boat-builders, Artemis Technologies with its electric powered ‘flying’ craft, such as Afloat adds, ‘Pioneer of Belfast’ when underway in London at speed on the Thames. The company have secured £2m in funding from HSBC, UK to expand export markets.

Belfast Based Artemis Technologies Brings ‘Flying’ Electric Boats to Overseas Market

12th December 2023 Belfast Lough
Belfast based Artemis Technologies, which is a Northern Ireland company, is bringing its ‘flying’ electrical boats to international markets after receiving millions of pounds in backing. The financial development reports Belfast Telegraph, ushers in a new era for the city’s…
Ireland’s ‘western isles’, notably the Aran archipelago is where a winter timetable (Rossaveel-Aran Islands only routes) is well under way and is operated by Aran Island Ferries, with above some of their fleet seen offshore of the Connemara coast. This year, marks their 40th anniversary, as AFLOAT highlights of Ireland’s largest domestic (including inter-island) ferry operator, which in 2021 reopened the Galway City-Inis Mór tourism orientated route which is to resume service in March, 2024. Noting, another operator out of Co. Clare, The Doolin Ferry Co. serve the archipelago.

Aran Island Ferries Winter Route out of Rossaveel Sees Connecting Shuttle-Bus Stop Relocate in Galway City

12th December 2023 Ferry
Following the closing of the seasonal tourist ferry in September on the direct Galway City-Aran Islands route, operator Aran Island Ferries continues with winter sailings, as part of the year-route out of Rossaveel, Connemara, writes Jehan Ashmore. So at this time…
Transition year students from Counties, Clare, Limerick and Kerry are invited to enter the SFPC/Hunt Museum collaborative short-film project: ‘Shooting the Breeze’ on the theme of ‘Renewable Energy Solutions’. For much more information, prizes to the winner and runners up, check out the details below.

Shannon Foynes Port Company Invite Transition Students to Enter 'Shooting the Breeze' Short-Film Competition

12th December 2023 Shannon Estuary
Shannon Foynes Port Company (SFPC) in collaboration with The Hunt Museum, Limerick would like to invite Transition Year Students in counties lining the Shannon estuary to enter a short film competition. The students invited from counties, Clare, Limerick and Kerry,…
Rail efficiency: At the Port of Waterford’s main Belview terminal, a rail engine swap-over took place from a train loaded with rail-track (top photo) to that of a train with containers (bottom). In both photos, AFLOAT adds were berthed containership Samskip Express and the dredger Freeway as reported last month.

Full Steam Ahead at Port of Waterford’s Belview Terminal As Rail Engine Makes Swap-Over

11th December 2023 Ports & Shipping
At the south-east Irish port of Waterford, the main terminal at Belview is where two trains were at the facility that led to maximised efficiency as an engine swap-over took place, writes Jehan Ashmore. The swap-over was carried out last…
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