- E-Flexer Series Ship Stats
- Length: 214,5 m
- Draught: 6,4 m
- Breadth: 27,8 m
- Capacity: 3100 lane meter + 120 cars, 927 passengers (ex crew), 175 cabins
- No of decks: 3 + car deck on dk 7
- Free height: 5,2 m on dk 3+5
- Engines: 2 x V12 4-stroke diesel
- Speed: 22 knots
The first of Stena Line‘s RoPax ferries under construction in China is planned to enter service on its Dublin – Holyhead route in early 2020. In all, three next-generation ships will operate Irish Sea routes.
The new generation of ferries, called Stena E-Flexer, will come on stream in 2020 and 2021. Parent company Stena is getting six nw vessels in all built at the AVIC Shipyard in China and plans to located half of them on the Irish Sea. The other three will be chartered out to external parties by Stena Line’s sister company Stena RoRo.
Niall Gibbons, CEO of Tourism Ireland, and Ian Davies, Stena Line’s Trade Director, Irish Sea South.
Stena Line’s CEO Niclas Mårtensson said: “Our Irish Sea routes are strategically very important to Stena Line and our customer,” adding that the freight market between Ireland and Britain has seen significant growth over the last five years.
“We have invested almost £200m in our ports and vessels across the region to improve and grow our capacity to offer a frequent, reliable and high-quality service for our freight and travel customers.
“The deployment of three new vessels is a tangible example of our strategic growth plan for the Irish Sea. I’m delighted to confirm that the first of our new vessels will be deployed on the Dublin – Holyhead service planned for early 2020. Two other vessels will be assigned to our Belfast – Liverpool service planned for spring of 2020 and early 2021.”
He said the new ferries will be the most energy efficient in the world and the line will be introducing new digital features for onboard passengers.
Ian Davies, Stena Line Trade Director Irish Sea South said: “Freight volumes have surpassed the Celtic Tiger peaks of 2007 and we are confident that this upward trend will continue – 2017 was a record year for Stena Line in the Irish Sea where we carried over 800,000 freight units on our routes to and from the Island of Ireland.”
The new vessel on the Dublin – Holyhead route will hold 1000 passengers, 120 cars as well as 3 100 freight lane meters delivering four daily sailings with an estimated crossing time of approximately 3.5 hrs.
Eamonn O’Reilly, CEO of Dublin Port Company, commented: “We are delighted that Stena Line has chosen Dublin as the location for its next generation of RoPax vessels in what is a significant investment in and enhancement of Ireland’s premier freight and tourism gateway. We look forward to welcoming the new vessel and the associated benefits it will bring to Dublin Port and the Irish economy.”
Niall Gibbons, CEO Tourism Ireland said: “Stena Line’s decision to locate the first of its new generation of ferries on the Holyhead to Dublin route is a strong indication of its continued confidence in the future of tourism between Britain and Ireland. We look forward to working in partnership with Stena Line, to drive demand for its services and help grow visitor numbers from Britain to the island of Ireland in the years ahead.”
