Stena Line Ferries News

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…

New to the Belfast-Birkenhead route is Stena Forwarder which Afloat highlights has a 2,500 freight lane metres capacity to serve the link’s shoulder sailing, operating along with twin passenger E-Flexer series ferries. Above the Copenhagen registered ro-ro in what it will look like when repainted in Stena livery.

Stena’s Freight-Ferry ‘Forwarder’ Enters Belfast-Birkenhead (Liverpool) Route

13th November 2023 Stena Line

A newly introduced freight-ferry for Stena Line’s Belfast-Birkenhead (Liverpool) route involved a ro-ro vessel make a maiden overnight crossing on the Irish Sea, writes Jehan Ashmore. The 2,500 freight-lane metres capacity Stena Forwarder arrived in Belfast on 3 November and…

Since Stena’s second Rosslare-Cherbourg route ferry, Stena Vision was introduced on the Ireland-France service in June, the operator has recorded its busiest summer with passenger and car numbers up over 90% on last year.

Stena Line Achieves Record Summer Volumes on Ireland-France Route of Rosslare-Cherbourg

9th October 2023 Stena Line

Ferry operator Stena Line has just recorded its busiest summer on their Ireland-France route with passenger and car numbers up over 90% on last year. The introduction of Stena Vision on the Rosslare-Cherbourg service in June has helped to drive passenger…

Nicola Abernethy, Stena Line’s recently appointed PR and Communications Manager for the Irish Sea

Stena Line in Belfast Appoints Communications Manager for Irish Sea Region

4th October 2023 Stena Line

Ferry operator Stena Line has appointed Nicola Abernethy as PR and Communications Manager at their Belfast office. Nicola is part of the Group Brand and Communications team and is responsible for media relations and driving the internal and external communications…

Artist’s impression of the Stena NewMax methanol-fuelled RoRo ferry

Finnish Marine Tech Firm Wärtsilä to Power Belfast’s NewMax Methanol Ferries

25th September 2023 Stena Line

Finnish marine tech firm Wärtsilä has been contracted to power what are being touted as the world’s first methanol-fuelled hybrid RoRo vessels currently being built for service across the Irish Sea. The company will supply an integrated hybrid propulsion system…

Stena AB owner and CEO Dan Stena Olsson, who has invested heavily in Northern Ireland over the last 28 years, will deliver a keynote speech at the annual Stena Forum which this year is held in Belfast.

Stena Line in Belfast Hosts International Business Conference

21st September 2023 Stena Line

Ferry company Stena Line is from today hosting a 3-day International Business Conference at the ICC, Belfast where also last week UK government ministers were at an International Investment Conference. This week's conference at the Laganside venue is where more…

The French Connection: Stena Horizon seen at Cherbourg and from where the ropax operates the route to Rosslare, has been transferred to the central Irish Sea for a brief period and so enable services be maintained including the North Channel link to Scotland.

Stena Line Ireland-France Ropax Covers Wales Route for A Week While Holyhead Ferry Shifts to Scottish Link

7th September 2023 Stena Line

A Stena Line Ireland-France route ferry was observed in Dublin Bay while operating between the capital and Holyhead, has led to one of the routes two ferries leave the Irish Sea route for a week, writes Jehan Ashmore. On Tuesday…

Ferry firm, Stena Line has confirmed its interest in launching a Dublin-Birkenhead service, noting the company also operate a Birkenhead-Belfast route. Above on Merseyside, bound for Belfast is the Stena Embla with stern vehicle deck and astern a P&O Ferries ropax bound for Dublin Port.

Operator Stena Line Could Launch Ferry to Dublin after P&O Axe Liverpool Route

31st August 2023 Stena Line

The largest ferry operator on the Irish Sea, Stena Line has said it hopes to launch a route from Birkenhead, on the Wirral peninsula, to Dublin Port following news that a historic Liverpool route is set to be axed. The…

Stena Line has secured permission for huge changes to Wales's busiest port where MW Nieuw Statendam made an inaugural call to the port off Anglesey for a one-day visit to the region on Tuesday.

Stena Line’s Big Decision that Could Now Transform Holyhead Port

17th August 2023 Stena Line

Stena Line's north Wales port of Holyhead is where a major decision has helped pave the way to transform the ferry port which has services to Dublin Port, and potentially create hundreds of jobs for the region. Devised by the…

A fire broke out on the Stena Superfast VII when berthed at the VT4 terminal (as above) in Belfast Harbour, no passengers were on board the 30,285 gross tonnes ferry which operates to Cairnryan, Scotland. AFLOAT adds the Stena Nordica which only last week was introduced on the Rosslare-Fishguard route, has today been redeployed to the North Channel to take over the sailings of Stena Superfast VII.

Fire On Stena Line Ferry Takes Place When Berthed in Belfast Harbour

20th July 2023 Stena Line

A North Channel ferry operated by Stena Line caught fire when berthed in Belfast Harbour yesterday, 19 July. The Stena Superfast VII which was berthed at Victoria Terminal 4 (VT4) is where emergency crews from the Northern Ireland Fire and…

Stena Vision is making its voyage from a shipyard in Gdansk, Poland following a major refit investment programme and is bound for Ireland from where it is due to go into service on the Rosslare-Cherbourg route on 30th June. AFLOAT this morning tracked the cruise ferry in the Kattegat when approaching the anchorage off Göteborg /Gothenburg, the homeport of the Swedish ferry’s owners. Originally named the Stena Germanica when built in Gdansk in 1988 and over the decades has only operated within Scandinavia, until this latest transfer to the Ireland-France route, where it is to join the ropax Stena Horizon on the direct mainland Europe connection.

Stena Line's Euro-Vision Cruiseferry Departs Poland for Ireland to Operate Rosslare – Cherbourg Service

15th June 2023 Stena Line

Stena Line’s latest addition to its expanding Irish Sea ferry fleet, Stena Vision, has departed a shipyard in Gdansk, Poland following a major refit investment programme and is bound for Rosslare Europort. The 39,178 gross tonnage cruise ferry for the…

Stena Line’s Belfast-Heysham route is to have two new freight vessels of the ‘NewMax’ series which will be able to use methanol fuel. The ships each with 2,800 lane metres of freight capacity will significantly increase capacity by 80% on the Irish Sea route.

New Ships for Stena Line to Boost Belfast-Heysham Freight Capacity by 80%

10th May 2023 Stena Line

Stena Line has announced that it is constructing two new bespoke freight ferries for Irish Sea service on its expanding Belfast-Heysham freight route. The multi-million pound investment will significantly increase freight capacity on the route. Each of the two new…

Following a blaze almost three weeks ago, Stena Europe is to re-enter service on the Fishguard-Rosslare route. The veteran vessel dating to 1981, AFLOAT adds has been on the Wales route for more than half its career, having begun sailings in 2002, however this is to change when the ferry is to be replaced by a more modern ropax, the Stena Nordica in July.

Fishguard Ferry Stena Europe Set to Return to Rosslare Service this Weekend

3rd March 2023 Stena Line

Ferry company, Stena Line is to resume sailings from Fishguard to Rosslare this Sunday, 5 March, just over three weeks since Stena Europe was taken off the Wales-Ireland route due to an engine room blaze. As the Western Telegraph writes,…

Stena says it is hoping that it 'can simplify trade on the indirect routes to Northern Ireland' through Dublin Port, from where above Stena Estrid is approaching having departed Holyhead in north Wales.

Stena Line Calls for Freight Firms Moving Goods from Britain to NI ‘Via Irish Land-Bridge’ to be ‘Treated Equally’

2nd March 2023 Stena Line

Ferry operator Stena Line has called for 'green' lanes to be applied on Dublin-Holyhead route for Northern Ireland-bound goods similar to lanes proposed for ports in the North under the new Brexit deal. The Swedish owned firm, the largest Irish…

The 170-metre Stena Line Nordica will be on the Rosslare-Fishguard Irish Sea route in July

Stena Line to Replace 'Europe' with Larger 'Nordica' on Rosslare-Fishguard Service

22nd February 2023 Stena Line

Swedish ferry company Stena Line has confirmed its plans to secure the 'future stability of its Rosslare-Fishguard service' by redeploying another ferry from its fleet. The larger 2000-built Stena Nordica, which has been operating in the Baltic Sea, is a…