Operator P&O Ferries which closed the Dublin-Liverpool route last month, has announced a new ro-ro freight route in the North Sea, between London (Tilbury 2) and the Dutch port of Rotterdam (Europoort) which is to start in March.

The UK-Netherlands route will complement P&O Ferries’ existing route to Belgium, the London-Zeebrugge route which together strengthens its rail-connected hub in Rotterdam.

Peter Hebblethwaite, P&O Ferries’ CEO, said: “The opening of our new route between London and Rotterdam gives P&O Ferries a unique network in the North Sea. We now have five hubs: Hull, Teesport, Tilbury, Zeebrugge and Europoort, connecting the north-east and south- east of England with the continent".

“We will offer our freight customers the earliest arrival on the Thames from Rotterdam, along with swift access to the M25 and terminal rail connections.

“The opening of the London - Rotterdam route will mark another significant step in our business transformation and further contribute to the end-to-end logistics service offered by our parent company, DP World.”

The new route will be served by the 125 freight-unit capacity Norbank, which in a ropax role recently ran on the Irish Sea route which closed with a final sailing from the Irish capital on 20 December.

The 17,464 gross tonnage vessel, Afloat.ie tracked the final departure from Merseyside on 26 December with the vessel arriving at the Dutch port two days later from where it will sail on a daily schedule with customer-focused sailing times including an early arrival in London, enabling on-time local delivery.

P&O Ferries operates services in the North Sea from three east coast UK ports – Hull, London and Teesport – and two ports in northern Europe at Zeebrugge,Belgium and Rotterdam.

Norbank, Afloat also adds is currently providing dry-dock relief cover on vessels that routinely serve the Hull-Rotterdam route.

A P&O Ferries ropax, the Norbay which operated their Dublin-Liverpool route which is set to close before the end of the year, has been time-chartered to ICG, parent company of Irish Ferries, writes Jehan Ashmore.

Afloat.ie contacted P&O Ferries which confirmed with a statement: We are delighted to confirm a time charter agreement with Irish Ferries for our vessel Norbay is for up to 6 months - with the potential for longer-term charter options and that the crew of Norbay will continue to be employed on the vessel during the charter.

Owen Barry, Director of Maritime Operations, P&O said: “Norbay is a great asset to retain within the business with many options for the longer term. Following her upcoming time charter we can either renew, redeploy her in our own fleet to give us great flexibility on other routes, or consider other charter options given the high market demand for this type of vessel. This provides not only ongoing employment for the vessel’s crew but strong options for additional revenue within the business.”

Until now, Norbay has been one of two ships operating on P&O Ferries’ Dublin-Liverpool route. P&O Ferries is now operating one ship on this route, (Afloat adds the Norbank) which is proposed to be closed towards the end of the year due to a lack of berth availability at the port of Liverpool from 2024.

Afloat has consulted the Irish Ferries website and Norbay is first to be deployed to the Dublin-Holyhead route next week, on 7 November. The chartered-in 17,464 gross tonnage Norbay has a 125 freight trailer unit capacity and for 125 passengers, however it appears the ropax will be operating in a freight-only mode.

Noting it is understood that the charter term of the Ireland-Wales route's existing ropax the Epsilon is to expire. Afloat awaits a confirmation from ICG on the freight-orientated vessel which also operates to France, having entered service for Irish Ferries a decade ago this month.

As for a full passenger and freight service on the Dublin-Holyhead route, Irish Ferries continue to maintain with Ulysses on the central Irish Sea corridor route which until recently was also served by the high speed craft, Dublin Swift. 

Last month, P&O had withdrawn the Norbay from the Dublin-Liverpool route with a final sailing on 16 October, this involved the overnight 8 hour crossing to Merseyside. This left twin ropax, Norbank as alluded, currently operating as a single-ship service in competition with Seatruck/CLdN, which in response increased capacity on the Irish Sea central corridor route to Dublin where they also have routes to mainland Europe.

It was on Wednesday when Afloat tracked Norbay in the Irish Sea having departed Liverpool, however the ropax headed to Holyhead to conduct berthing trials. The Norbay continued to Dublin with the ropax arriving in th evening notably at Irish Ferries Terminal 1 (berth 51a) and then shifted to berth (49) to facilitate the arrival of ropax Epsilon from Holyhead.

Berth 49 is also where Irish Ferries operate to Cherbourg, noting yesterday’s 1600 hrs sailing from the capital by W.B. Yeats was cancelled due to the adverse weather impacts of Storm Ciaran affecting in particular, north-west France. 

To recap, in August P&O announced it was to close the historic Ireland-England route, having cited that the port owners of Liverpool, Peel Ports Group, had a lack of berth availability in 2024, at the Gladstone Dock facility. No sooner had P&O decided to end the Irish Sea route, led Stena Line to express an interest in establishing the Liverpool (Birkenhead)-Dublin route as the ferry operator already has a route from Wirral Peninsula at the Twelve Quays terminal at Birkenhead connecting Belfast.

Originally Norbay which was built in 1992 to serve the P&O owned North Sea Ferries Hull-Rotteram (Europoort) route, together with younger twin, Norbank dating to 1993. In January, 2002 both ropax’s were transferred to the Dublin-Liverpool route and have served the link for almost twenty two years.  

The welfare of thousands of seafarers will be guaranteed fair wages, proper rest periods and suitable training thanks to a new Seafarers’ Charter launched by the UK Government today.

Building on government action already taken, the charter – backed by DFDS Ferries, Condor Ferries, Brittany Ferries (see related story) and Stena – is part of the Government’s wider nine-point plan to protect seafarers and boost employment protections, ensuring they’re paid and treated fairly – irrespective of flag or nationality.

This is at the heart of the UK’s response to P&O Ferries’ appalling decision to fire nearly 800 of its staff without consultation or notice last year.

• Wages and working conditions for thousands of seafarers will be bolstered by launch of historic Charter.
• UK and French Governments agree to join forces to improve conditions for Seafarers and help grow the economy.
• Part of UK’s nine-point plan to support seafarers following P&O Ferries’ disgraceful sackings of nearly 800 staff.

The UK Government’s charter will be launched alongside a similar initiative by the French Government during a visit by Maritime Minister Baroness Vere to Paris today to meet her counterpart Minister Berville.

Maritime Minister Baroness Vere said: “Fair pay and protection against unlawful discrimination are the basic rights of any employee. Our seafarers deserve nothing less.

“I therefore expect companies across the maritime sector to sign up to this Charter, letting their staff know they’re serious about protecting their rights and welfare.

“Today, in Paris, alongside Minister Berville, we strengthen our commitment to protect those working in the Channel and we’ll continue collaborating with our international partners on this vital issue.”

During the UK-France summit in Paris earlier this year, Transport Secretary Mark Harper met his French counterpart Clément Beaune, with both nations agreeing to continue working together to improve conditions for those working in the Channel.

The Government has already delivered the Seafarers’ Wages Act, a key safeguard to protecting domestic seafarers in the UK. The law will make it illegal to not pay the thousands of seafarers regularly entering the UK at least the equivalent of the UK National Minimum Wage.

The Seafarers’ Charter requires employers to:

• pay seafarers for overtime at a rate of a least 1.25 times the basic hourly rate
• ensure adequate training and development is provided
• provide employees with a full, indefinite contract
• allow seafarers to receive social security benefits, including sickness benefits, family benefits, and medical care
• adopt roster patterns considering fatigue, mental health and safety
• provide adequate rest periods between shifts and rosters
• carry out regular drug and alcohol testing

As well as the Seafarers’ Wages Act and the Charter, strong action has been taken against rogue employers using controversial practices which was revealed in the plans to create a statutory code of practice.

The Code will make it explicitly clear to employers that they must not use threats of dismissal to pressurise employees into accepting new terms, and they should have honest and open discussions with their employees and representatives.

John Napton, CEO, Condor Ferries, said: “Condor Ferries is a proud and responsible employer, dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace for all staff and crew across our network. We therefore fully support the Seafarers’ Charter being launched by the UK government today.”

Christophe Mathieu, Brittany Ferries CEO, said: “When it comes to seafarers’ wages and working conditions, we believe that all ferry companies should aim for the highest bar and not participate in a race to the bottom. (For comments from Christophe Mathieu on today’s event, urging passengers and freight customers to choose companies that are committed to their seafarers, see attachment).

“That’s why this charter is such an important step forward for us. We never forget the importance of seafarers and are proud to be part of the fight to protect their rights, on both sides of the Channel. We also intend to shout about this from the rooftops, urging freight and passenger customers to make the right decision when choosing a carrier.”

Gemma Griffin MBE, Vice President & Head of Global Crewing, DFDS, said: “DFDS welcomes the Seafarers Charter and any related legislation that protects the employment rights of seafarers and ensures that there is a level playing field for all operators. We have been cooperating with the French & UK authorities on the practical application of the charter and the new laws, and are very pleased to see the actions taken by both authorities, so far.”

More ferry crossings from Northern Ireland to Scotland are to be added by Stena Line to mitigate the harm caused by P&O Ferries suspending its services after laying off 800 staff.

UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps confirmed the extra sailings will take place from Tuesday, March 22 (yesterday) and will help retailers transport goods.

He described Stena Line as having "stepped up" in the wake of the P&O surprise cancellation of routes last week.

"Reprehensible", "disgraceful" and "callous" - these are some of the terms used by government ministers to describe P&O since the scandal hit headlines last week.

The way the workers, including fifty from Northern Ireland were laid off, has caused outrage across all parties in Stormont uniting political adversaries in their condemnation of P&O.

Economy Minister Gordon Lyons said that neither he nor anyone in his department were given any warning about P&O's sudden sacking of employees, including on its Larne to Cairnryan route.

To read comments made by the minister, ITV News covers more of the political response.

Across the Irish Sea, Afloat adds on Monday at the House of Commons, the Labour Party's emergency vote on workers' rights resulted in a victory for seafarers as MPs voted to condemn P&O Ferries.

The vote was passed by 211 votes to none, with the UK government abstaining. For more about the Commons vote can be read from the union, Nautilius International's website here.

While the response by the Irish Government, reports The Irish Times, is that they admit it has ‘limited’ options under Irish law in dealing with the ferry company.

The company caused outrage when it dismissed the 800 workers by Zoom call on St Patrick’s Day and told them that their employment was being terminated immediately.

At least 60 of the employees sacked by P&O Ferries on Thursday are from Ireland, their trade union Nautilus Maritime has stated.

More from the newspaper here including the role of the Irish Maritime Development Office (IMDO) over the ferry dispute. 

P&O Ferries has confirmed that 800 employees were issued “immediate severance notices” with its sudden cancellation of services today (Thursday 17 March).

As reported earlier on Afloat.ie, the ferry company — which operates Dublin-Liverpool and Larne-Cairnryan services — said it was not going into liquidation but that all of its ferries have been instructed to stay in port.

In a statement flagging a £100 million loss year on year, the company said it “is not a viable business”, according to TheJournal.ie.

The statement added: “Our survival is dependent on making swift and significant changes now. Without these changes there is no future for P&O Ferries.”

Unions have instructed their members currently on board P&O vessels not to leave, as agency workers have reportedly been bussed into replace them at various ports.

RTÉ News adds that six people who work for the company at Dublin Port have been assured that their jobs remain secure.

#FerryNews - A North Sea ferry docking in Hull, England was delayed for an hour and a half after a man had to be airlifted to hospital.

The Pride of York, operated by P&O ferries, reports HullLive was returning to the UK port on Sunday July 29 having sailed overnight from Zeebrugge, Belgium, when an air ambulance was called after a man became unwell on board.

Passengers on board the ship filmed as staff on board the helicopter landed on the ship.

P&O ferries confirmed the medical evacuation took place and the man was assisted by doctors on board the ferry. A spokesman for P&O said: "There was an evacuation by helicopter last night.

For further reading including footage of the helicopter rescue, click here.